


Connected

by ZoneRobotnik



Series: Connected [2]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: "Rapunzel's Return" Bad End (or is it), F/M, Good girls go bad, Moon Powers Cassandra (Disney: Tangled), Moon Powers Varian (Disney), Raps has some issues, Varian Angst (Disney), Villain Varian (Disney)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:15:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 15
Words: 49,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26334739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZoneRobotnik/pseuds/ZoneRobotnik
Summary: Ever since his visit to Rapunzel's Fantasy Land, Varian has been learning new things about himself...and his connection to Rapunzel.(Sequel to "Something's Wrong")
Relationships: Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel, Queen Arianna of Corona/King Frederic of Corona (Disney), Rapunzel/Varian (Disney)
Series: Connected [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1913629
Comments: 80
Kudos: 66





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Something's Wrong](https://archiveofourown.org/works/25618765) by [ZoneRobotnik](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZoneRobotnik/pseuds/ZoneRobotnik). 



> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Old Corona. The Sundrop’s boyfriend had said the troublesome boy, Varian, was from here. He was still weak from his loss, but rage fueled his will for revenge and he managed to make his way to the Kingdom of Corona and rebuild his House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow in an empty space near the town.  
  
He took his human shape and let out a soft sigh. “Corona…it ‘as been a _very_ long time.” He brushed off his sleeve. “Well, in ze real world, at least. Now, then…” He walked over to the town nearby. “Let us see what zhis boy is like in ze real world.”  
  
Old Corona was deserted, the only “resident” being Varian’s father encased in amber. “Zo much ability…such talent…” He walked up to the amber and placed his hand against it. “He could have _such_ potential, if properly nurtured.”  
  
He glanced to the side as he heard footsteps and changed form to float into a hiding place and watch.  
  
Varian came in with an unfamiliar man, dressed in different clothes. “There _has_ to be a way…”  
  
“We’ve tried everything we _can_ , kid.” The man sighed. “It’s… _this_ is _magic_.”  
  
“No, no, magic isn’t real!” Varian shook his head.  
  
“We’ve _talked_ about this. That dream you had—”  
  
“It was just _that_ – a dream! I-It wasn’t _real_!” Varian insisted, holding his head.  
  
The man sighed and knelt to look him in the eyes. “You can’t deny the existence of magic forever, Varian. That dream, the green glow, was _not_ something that could be explained by science. And neither are the black rocks or this amber.” He gestured to it.  
  
Varian hung his head. “But, magic is…it’s so _difficult_ to _understand_ , though…”  
  
“Oh, Varian, I know.” The man stood up. “Clementine is looking into magic ways to take care of it. We _will_ get him out, though. Even if we have to resort to…unsavory methods.”  
  
Varian nodded. “Thanks, Andrew.”  
  
“Let’s get back, before His Majesty starts _missing_ you.” Andrew chuckled.  
  
“I wonder if he’s done organizing his archives in proper alphabetical order yet.” Varian asked with a grin.  
  
‘Fascinating. I recall him wanting nothing to _do_ with ze King before.’ Tromus thought. ‘Zhen again, he was _very_ avoiding of her questions. I must learn more.’ He left the building and followed after them.  
  
“Whoa.” Varian stopped, looking to the side. “ _That’s_ new.”  
  
“Oh, a clearly-magical building made of seashells? No, that’s been there. I’m sure, I saw it last week.” Andrew said teasingly.  
  
“No, I _know_ it wasn’t…oh. You’re _fucking_ with me.” Varian said in a deadpan tone.  
  
“Where did you learn that? Was it Juniper?” Andrew raised an eyebrow.  
  
Varian shrugged. “I was in _prison_ , Andrew. I heard the things they said to you.”  
  
“You were _supposed_ to be _asleep_.” Andrew cringed.  
  
Varian sighed. “Yeah, I know.”  
  
They got onto horses and took off to the Capital, with Tromus following them in secret.  
  
\--  
  
Varian glanced around as he rode the guard horse he’d been using for the past few weeks, ever since they took over the castle. He got the feeling of someone watching him, someone familiar, but when he looked around he couldn’t see anyone and he couldn’t think of who it might be, besides.  
  
They crossed the bridge and terrified citizens scattered to avoid being run over by the two as they rushed through town without a care. They stopped in the castle courtyard and hopped off, letting a stable hand run over and take their horses back to the stables. As they passed the guard, they gave the two of them salutes and Varian gave a two-fingered salute in response as he followed Andrew into the castle, Andrew just chuckling as he opened the doors for them to go inside.  
  
“Ah, this is the life.” Andrew said as they passed by staff, who bowed as they walked by.  
  
“Yeah.” Varian nodded, glancing at a particular maid as he passed her. She gave him a shy smile before going back to her sweeping.  
  
“Aw, you got a crush?” Andrew teased him.  
  
“Faith is just my friend.” Varian shook his head. “She’s a lot like _me_ , you know.”  
  
“Really?” Andrew hummed.  
  
“Well, you know…clumsy, making mistakes, no one paying attention to her…” Varian sighed. “I used to be just like that, before…you know. I made everyone look at me, hear me, be _aware_ I _exist_ as a _person_.”  
  
Andrew hummed in reply.  
  
\--  
  
They walked on until they reached the throne room, where King Frederic and Queen Arianna were sitting in their thrones.  
  
“Varian!” King Frederic greeted cheerfully. “I finished that task! You were right, it’s so easy to find things, now!”  
  
“That’s great, Your Majesty.” Varian said, walking over to him with a forced smile.  
  
“Did you and Lord Andrew enjoy your ride out to Old Corona?” Queen Arianna asked kindly.  
  
“We did, thank you.” Andrew answered for him.  
  
“Speaking of that, we need to talk to the others.” Varian said, looking at Andrew. “There’s been a development.”  
  
“Is everything alright?” Queen Arianna asked.  
  
“Nothing we can’t handle.” Andrew assured her. “Is there anything of concern to address, before we go?”  
  
“Oh no, go no.” King Andrew assured them. “Take care, dear boy.”  
  
Varian kept his forced smile on. “And you, Your Majesty.” He replied, before they both left the throne room together. Once they passed through the hallway and entered the War Room, he finally let his smile morph into a scowl.  
  
“’Take care, dear boy’.” He said mockingly as Andrew pulled out a small mirror.  
  
“Juniper,” Andrew said to the mirror, making it light up, “gather everyone in the War Room. There’s been a development of a magical kind.”  
  
Varian cringed.  
  
\--  
  
Tromus watched as Varian and his new friends gathered in the War Room.  
  
“Thanks for coming.” Andrew nodded. “A strange building has appeared overnight over by Old Corona. Since it’s clearly magical—”  
  
“It might not be.” Varian cut in.  
  
“Kid, a _whole fucking building_ appeared _overnight_.” A dark-skinned woman wirth hair as long as the Sundrop’s braid raised an eyebrow. “Can’t be anything _but_ magic.”  
  
“May I continue?” Andrew raised an eyebrow. “Juniper, we will be _talking_ about your free use of foul language around Varian later.”  
  
She rolled her eyes. “ _Fine_.”  
  
“Varian?” Andrew looked at him.  
  
“Yes, sir.” Varian said sheepishly.  
  
“Thank you.” Andrew nodded. “Since it’s _clearly_ magical, we can’t leave this up to the Royal Guard to handle. We’re going to find out what this thing is, what it wants, and how to _get rid of it_. Got it?”  
  
“’We’ as in…” Varian hesitated.  
  
“ _All_ of us.” Andrew nodded.  
  
Varian sighed. “Right, of course. But I’m only going so I can prove it’s some weird geographical occurrence and _not magic_.”  
  
“And if it _does_ turn out to be magic, you have to let go of your skepticism, open your mind and _embrace_ it.” One of the others said slyly.  
  
“And you will _never_ let me live it down, will you, Clementine?” Varian sighed.  
  
“Absolutely.” She cackled.  
  
Tromus left them alone to return to the House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow. He had much to prepare for his new…guests.  
  
\--  
  
“Can someone explain to me why we’re going into this creepy place _at night_?” Varian asked as they got off their horses and approached the door, which had a crab-shaped knocker.  
  
“One, we were busy during the day. Two, because that’s the _best_ time to check out spooky places.” Juniper grinned.  
  
“Scared, Varian?” Clementine teased.  
  
“N-No!” Varian shook his head.  
  
“I feel a dark aura.” Kai said uncomfortably. “This is dangerous.”  
  
“All the more reason to go.” Maisie nodded. “We don’t want any of the Coronans to get caught up in whatever this is.”  
  
“Well said.” Andrew nodded.  
  
He walked forward and knocked on the door. After a few moments, it opened up and they saw a man in fancy clothes looking out at them. “Ah! Good evening, travelers!”  
  
“Evening.” Andrew greeted. “We saw this place and thought we’d check it out. Mind if we ask what it is?”  
  
“Why, zhis is zhe House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow.” The man opened the door wider to let them in.  
  
“That’s _way_ too many words to just say ‘today’.” Varian said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
“Yes, well, I prefer two words where one would suffice.” He smiled. “Why don’t you come in, travelers?”  
  
“Thank you, we’d love to.” Andrew said as they stepped inside.  
  
The inside looked like…well, the inside of a seashell. At least, according to books he’d read, Varian had never actually seen a seashell himself. As they walked in, Varian was hit with a sense of familiarity and then, for a moment, he heard the sound of pounding rain and saw an image in front of him, like a ghost, of Rapunzel with a group of people; some he knew and others he didn’t. Her traveling party, he supposed. He blinked and it was gone.  
  
“Weird.” He murmured.  
  
“Is something ze matter, young one?” Their host asked.  
  
“We didn’t get your name.” Juniper said, drawing his attention away from Varian. He smiled at her gratefully – the guy was giving him the _creeps_.  
  
“Oh, of course.” He smiled. “My name is Matthews.”  
  
Varian’s brow furrowed. The name sounded… _familiar_.  
  
“Please, feel free to have a look around.” Matthews suggested.  
  
“Thank you.” Andrew smiled. “You’ve been very kind.”  
  
“If you need me, I will be around.” Matthews smiled and walked off.  
  
Andrew waited until he was gone, then turned to the others. “Alright, let’s check this place out. Be on your guard, we _are_ dealing with magic here.” He reminded them. “No one walks alone. I’m with Varian, Juniper’s with Kai and Clementine’s with Maisie. We meet up back here in three hours, got it?”  
  
“Got it.” They all said in unison.  
  
“If you get in trouble, use your mirrors to call for help.” Juniper pulled out a small mirror before putting it away.  
  
“Use caution at all times.” Clementine said, then looked at Andrew and Varian. “ _Especially_ you two.” She then walked off with Maisie as they all split off.  
  
“She thinks we aren’t cautious?” Varian asked.  
  
“We _were_ in prison for months.” Andrew reminded him with a shrug.  
  
“Oh yeah.” Varian sighed.  
  
\--  
  
The boy _seemed_ to be harmless, but Tromus knew otherwise. He had a rather formidable mind, capable of banishing his illusions, and apparently, he also had friends in the real world that Tromus hadn’t been able to detect when he made things “perfect” for Varian. Then again, it was a wonder he was able to get as much as he _did_ , considering the boy was merely a persistent stowaway in Princess Rapunzel’s mind.  
  
He watched the group as they explored, waiting for one of them to make a mistake. However, unlike Rapunzel’s group, _this_ one seemed well-versed in magic.  
  
“Varian, no, don’t touch that mirror.” Andrew pulled Varian back from the ornate mirror he was interested in.  
  
“Why?” Varian asked.  
  
“Because it’s magic and things aren’t always as they seem.” Andrew said, shaking his head.  
  
Were it not for his protector, the boy would’ve surely been caught by one of his traps by now. He had to find a way to _separate_ _them_ if he intended to take his revenge against the boy.  
  
“Rapunzel?” Varian suddenly said, looking confused.  
  
Tromus raised an eyebrow. Andrew looked where he was looking and then looked at him. “Varian?”  
  
“I…” Varian blinked and looked at him. “I…sorry. I think I might be tired. Maybe we should come back tomorrow.”  
  
Well, _that_ wouldn’t do.  
  
“Alright, let’s head back and wait for the others.” Andrew said, leading him back down the hall.  
  
\--  
  
The closer they got to the exit, the more apprehension Varian felt. It was like something was telling him that something bad was going to happen when they got there. They reached the door and Andrew pulled out his mirror. “Juniper, Varian’s not feeling well. We’ll come back tomorrow, call everyone back.  
  
“Got it.” Juniper replied. “See you soon.”  
  
**_{Well, I don’t know about all of you, but I’d take a night in that rainy caravan over one in this inn any day!}_**  
  
“Eugene…” Varian breathed, looking towards the stairs, at the image of people he saw standing there. He watched as they ran towards the exit, then walked over to follow their movements, as if in a trance. They reached out to the door and so did he.  
  
“Must you leave so soon?”  
  
It was odd. He was hearing his voice twice, like an echo, both in the strange vision and in his reality. He turned to look at Matthews, who was approaching them.  
  
“He’s not feeling too well, we’ll come back tomorrow.” Andrew assured him. “We’re all eager to see what this place is.” He walked over to stand next to Varian, his brow furrowed a bit as he looked at him with a silent, questioning look. Varian just bowed his head, a silent “I don’t know…” answer.  
  
**_{Or did you meet the people in the mirror? I should have warned you about them. Live and learn. Or just live.}_** A vision of Matthews was tending the fire before the group, separate to the Matthews who stood in front of them now.  
  
Varian rubbed at his temple. What were these…visions? Was he going insane?  
  
“Oh, well, we have rooms here you can stay in. and you are welcome to stay as long as you like.” Matthews assured them, walking over to place a hand on Varian’s shoulder. “You might even grow to enjoy it.”  
  
Andrew gently but firmly moved his hand off of Varian’s shoulder. “We’re going as soon as the others arrive.”  
  
**_{Enjoy it! Uh, no thank you! We’ll take our chances in the…rain.}_** Before him, Rapunzel opened the door in the vision to reveal a vicious storm.  
  
Varian reached out and opened the door, staring out at the vicious storm that had started sometime while they were in this windowless place. “Uh…”  
  
Andrew cringed. “Guess we’re not going _anywhere_ , not in _this_ weather.” He said as Varian closed the door again, then pulled out his mirror once more. “Juniper, bad news. There’s terrible weather outside, we’re stuck here unless we want to get soaked to the bone.”  
  
“We’ll discuss it when we get over there. We’re almost at your location.” Juniper replied.  
  
“What a handy device.” Matthews said with interest.  
  
“It’s a Communication Mirror. Like a Magic Mirror, but for communication.” Andrew said, tapping it to cut off contact.  
  
“We’re here.” Juniper said as they were joined by the others.  
  
Kai walked over and opened the door. “Ngh. Bad karma to go out there.” He said, closing the door.  
  
**_{I’ll take first watch?}_**  
  
Varian rubbed at his temple again. It was so weird, hearing Cassandra’s voice after a whole year of…well, he’d _technically_ heard her more recently, in the strange dream, but this felt…real.  
  
The question was, _why_ was he hearing her?  
  
“I suppose we continue looking around, then.” Andrew sighed.  
  
“Well, if you are all hungry, I have a meal prepared.” Matthews offered.  
  
They all exchanged wary looks before Andrew turned to the man. “That’s very kind of you, but we would prefer to make our own food. You see, we Saporians have a _very_ specific diet.” He explained calmly.  
  
“Oh, how rude of me. Of course, I will show you to the kitchens. I should have asked about what you would be able to eat before making any kind of meal.” He walked off and they followed as a group.  
  
“You okay, kid?” Andrew asked quietly, nudging Varian.  
  
“I’m…not sure.” Varian admitted. “I’ll…I’ll tell you later, when he’s not around.”  
  
Andrew nodded and moved an arm around his shoulders protectively. Varian smiled a bit, then looked to his side at the strange vision of Rapunzel and the others curled up in sleeping bags in front of the fire, waiting out the storm.  
  
\--  
  
Kai took care of cooking, and the others stayed in the kitchen with him while Matthews walked off to probably eat his own food. Varian sat down on a stool and sighed, rubbing at his temple.  
  
“What’s up?” Juniper asked. “Place too much for you? You seeing ghosts?”  
  
“Sort of? It’s weird.” Varian rubbed at his eyes. “I’m seeing…images. Flashes of...and hearing…” He closed his eyes. “I keep seeing Princess Rapunzel.”  
  
“That’s weird.” Juniper remarked.  
  
“What do you mean, you keep seeing her?” Andrew asked.  
  
“I don’t know.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “I’m not seeing her here, in this room, but I think…I think that…ugh, there’s no scientific explanation for this.”  
  
“So, try explaining it in another way.” Clementine suggested.  
  
Varian sighed. “It’s like…it’s like she’s _been_ here, and I’m seeing her memories.” He fidgeted with his gloves. “You remember that bizarre dream I told you all about, where I was trapped in Princess Rapunzel’s mind somehow, in a bizarre world that a Disciple of Zhan Tiri made?”  
  
“Yes.” Juniper nodded.  
  
“Well, I don’t know how, but I think I’m _still_ connected to her mind. Maybe it’s just this place, or maybe it’s just in general, but for some reason I’m seeing the things she saw.”  
  
“What did you see before?” Andrew asked. “When you said her name?”  
  
Varian held his head. “Uhm…the people in the mirror. She was fighting them.”  
  
“By any chance, the mirror you _almost_ touched earlier?” Andrew raised an eyebrow.  
  
Varian nodded.  
  
“Can you see anything here?” Maisie asked.  
  
“No.” Varian shook his head. “You know, most people would be saying I’m crazy.”  
  
“ _Most_ people don’t believe in magical connections.” Juniper smirked.  
  
“Alright, let’s test this theory. When we walk around later, I want you to let me know if you see any visions of her.” Andrew smiled, placing his hand on Varian’s head and rubbing it a bit. “Maybe you can warn us of a danger she encountered before we encounter it.”  
  
Varian nodded. “Yeah. Maybe.”  
  
“Assuming you truly have a magical connection to Princess Rapunzel, how far does this connection go?” Clementine asked thoughtfully. “I’d be interested in seeing if you could reach further.”  
  
“What do you mean?” Varian asked.  
  
“Well, you currently only see what she’s _done_. What if you could reach through and see what she’s _doing_?” Clementine explained with a sly smile.  
  
“What she’s… _doing_?” Varian breathed. “Like…looking through her eyes?”  
  
“Yeah.” Andrew nudged him. “Sound like something you might wanna try?”  
  
“Uhm, sure. Uh, but let’s make sure that I actually _do_ have this connection, first.” Varian nodded.  
  
“Sounds good to me.” Andrew nodded. “We’ll do everything we can to help you figure it out.”


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The House of Yesterday's Tomorrow is a strange place, indeed, but also fascinating...and sinister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney
> 
> ((Warning: Enemy character death.))

After a hearty, meatless meal, they set off to explore again, Varian with Andrew again. They walked down the hall and Varian looked around, then paused when he saw an image of Rapunzel going in a door. He walked over and opened the door, seeing a bedroom.  
  
“Varian?” Andrew followed him as he went in.  
  
Varian walked over and slowly sat down on a bed, looking at Rapunzel in front of him. She’d…changed, now that he was looking at her closer. Not just in clothes, but her entire demeanor. She wasn’t so innocent anymore, she’d seen and done things that had her entire body tense, alert. She was afraid. She was _afraid_.   
  
He reached out to the image, his eyes half-lidded, and cupped her cheek gently. “What are you so _scared_ of, Princess?” He whispered.  
  
Andrew cleared his throat. “I suppose you’re seeing another vision, then?”  
  
Varian blinked and looked at him, then dropped his hand to his lap. “R-Right. Vision.”  
  
Andrew chuckled, and Varian watched as Rapunzel got up and left the room. He got up and followed her and Andrew kept pace with him as he followed her. She vanished after a bit, though, and he held his head. “Ugh…lost it.”  
  
“Well, we’ll find another, I’m sure.” Andrew patted his shoulder. “Let’s keep going.”  
  
“I knew she didn’t want to go back to the real world…but I don’t know what’s going on. Where she’s going, what she’s going through…none of it.” Varian sighed. “And part of me is wondering why I should even _care_ , she _left_ me!”  
  
“She did.” Andrew nodded. “But, it seems that you’re connected to her in a way that no one else is.” He placed his hand on his shoulder. “A connection like that…it’s hard to _not_ care.”  
  
Varian sighed heavily, then walked on. “I should _hate_ her. She _left_ me, _abandoned_ me, let me _suffer_! But because of some…some stupid…” He pursed his lips. “It’s _hard_ to hate her, especially after…that. After fighting the cultist together, after learning we’re…connected. And I don’t think she knows.”  
  
He turned to him and sighed, rubbing at his eyes. “I think I’m really tired now.”  
  
“Do you want to go back to that room?” Andrew nodded to it.  
  
“Uhm…” Varian pursed his lips. “I…uh…no, let’s not. Let’s find another one.” He walked on, quicker. Andrew followed him, keeping close.  
  
He appreciated him being here to protect him. Varian got the impression that, if it wasn’t for Andrew, he’d have gotten into all sorts of trouble. He reached for a door and Andrew stopped him before placing a hand against it and muttering something. It flashed red and he steered Varian away.  
  
“What does the red mean?” Varian asked.  
  
“Monster.” Andrew explained.  
  
“A monster. A _real_ monster? _Of course_ , there’s a _monster_!” Varian threw his hands up.  
  
They came across a playroom and found the others already here, checking the colorful room out. Varian wondered if they’d ever had toys like these growing up, and he walked over to pick up a book before he sat down to read it.  
  
“And _why_ are we just carelessly hanging out in a suspicious daycare?” Andrew raised an eyebrow.  
  
“Looks like a good place to rest. Besides, Kai wanted the bear.” He pointed to Kai snuggling a stuffed bear.  
  
Andrew sighed. “Kai, come on. That’s not ours, put it back.”  
  
Varian chuckled, looking up at them. While they had their conversation, he was seeing Rapunzel tease Eugene with a stuffed bear, the same bear Kai was hugging, while Lance (that was his name, right?) and Cassandra played with fake swords in a duel. The old drunk named Shorty was lazing around, and they seemed to be having fun.  
  
“I want it.” Kai insisted.  
  
“I’ll get you another one, this isn’t ours. Stealing from your host is bad karma.” Andrew coaxed.  
  
“…Bad karma.” Kai set the bear down.  
  
Varian watched as Cassandra walked over to the shelf and took a top off it, the Saporians’ conversation drowning out what was said. Then they spun the top and…Cassandra, Lance and the old man all turned into children.  
  
He decided he didn’t want to have a repeat of that with _this_ group and cleared his throat.  
  
“Varian?” Andrew looked at him.  
  
“I just had another vision. That top up there?” He pointed to it. “It’s magical, turns you into children. Don’t touch it.”  
  
Andrew grinned and gave a thumbs-up. “Nice work.”  
  
“Well, we’ve rested long enough.” Juniper got up. “What’cha reading there, scamp?”  
  
“A children’s book.” Varian got up and put it away as they all headed for the exit.  
  
“Keep it up.” Andrew rubbed Varian’s head. “With any luck, we’ll avoid any trouble _she_ got into here.”  
  
Varian nodded, smiling. “You can count on me!”  
  
\--  
  
Visions? The boy was having _visions_ now?! Fascinating! It seemed that he wasn’t just a random hitchhiker but was in fact connected to the Sundrop’s mind himself! Perhaps he could reach her power through him. The problem was with his magic-using guardians, if only _they_ were out of the way…  
  
He followed along discreetly, keeping an eye on the group but Varian especially. He didn’t seem to notice his presence but, if he got too close, then his adult guardians _did_ and so he had to keep his distance.   
  
“Wait, this way.” Varian headed off and Andrew followed, as always. The others hung back, either to keep watch or just because they didn’t want to follow him aimless wanderings. He drifted past them and watched what the boy was doing.  
  
He stopped at a door and Tromus watched as Varian approached it.  
  
“What’s the matter?” Andrew asked.  
  
“I…I saw Rapunzel running _out_ of here.” He looked up at the ram-head décor on the door. “This feels…” He reached down and slowly opened the door.  
  
“Varian, be careful.” Andrew said, moving a hand to his shoulder.  
  
“I _know_ this place.” Varian pushed the door wider, then stepped inside, looking around.  
  
The room was dimly lit, an altar sat before an idol of Zhan Tiri. Whether the boy know it or not, the Sundrop had certainly been here. In fact, she was in here when Tromus had to deal with the little brat in the _first_ place!  
  
“Rapunzel…” Varian walked towards the altar. “Yes, I…I _know_ this place. She was _here_!” He gasped and turned to Andrew. “MATTHEWS!”  
  
“What?” Andrew looked around.  
  
“No, no! That’s the cultist’s name! She was here! She was in this house when she was in the world that I got pulled into with her, she…our _host_ is the one responsible.” Varian realized, his eyes going wide.  
  
“Bravo.” Tromus slammed the door shut and appeared before them. Varian moved behind Andrew and Andrew moved a hand to hold his protectively. “But then, I should have _expected_ you to figure it out, _Varian_.” He said venomously. “You were _quite_ the thorn in my side and ruined _everything_.” He swung out a hand and green vines came to life and started to wrap around the two of them, pulling them apart from each other. “Now I will make you wish you _had_.”  
  
“Let _go_ of me!” Varian struggled in his grasp.  
  
They heard something hit the door hard; the others were trying to get in. Varian and Andrew thrashed in their bonds, and Tromus tightened them around the duo. “You are _never_ leaving this building.” He said cruelly.  
  
“Let. Go!” Varian cried out, as more and more vines wrapped around him. “Stop!”  
  
Andrew saved his strength for struggling silently, or maybe he was just muttering. He moved a vine over his mouth to shut him up and continued to wrap them up until they were completely encased in the vines.  
  
“I’ll take your life force and use it to fuel my own power!” Tromus said cruelly.  
  
The door was hit again, harder, and he focused his efforts on the two in the room. To his shock, Varian’s vines started to glow blue before they turned black and he felt his _own_ life force draining. He gasped and quickly released them, loosing control of the vines to save himself. Though Andrew hit the ground with a weak groan, Varian just floated in the air, his oddly-colored streak glowing bright blue with his eyes. Then he slowly lowered to the ground, removed his gloves and picked up a still-green vine, gripping it tightly and making it grow blue before it turned black. Tromus quickly loosed control of that one as well, and Varian looked up at him before walking towards him.  
  
“Stay back!” He ordered, backing away. “Back!” It couldn’t be. It _couldn’t_ be. How could this _child_ possess the destructive powers of the Moonstone, when the Moontone Opal hadn’t left the Dark Kingdom?!   
  
“Stay back!” He said again, then flinched when a wave of moon energy came out of the child, who was still approaching him, his hair turning completely blue with a white streak.  
  
“Don’t you dare…stay back!” He backed up against the wall, and Varian reached up a hand to grab onto his green wrists before he could escape through it. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with! Master! Master, I beg of you! Master Zhan Tiri!”  
  
The child just smiled a cold, cruel smile and then tightened his bare-handed grip. He let out a scream as his body glowed blue and then turned black before he felt himself breaking apart.  
  
So…this is what it was like to truly…die.  
  
He let out one last despaired cry before everything went black.  
  
\--  
  
Varian slowly lowered his empty hands and then collapsed to the ground. He barely heard Andrew speaking, and then his gloves were being pulled back on and then he was being cradled in someone’s arms before a crowd was around him.  
  
“…have to get out of here, it’s falling apart.”  
  
“Come on!”  
  
He was shifted slightly and then his body was being rocked as the person holding him got up and started running for the exit. They burst out of the building and Varian saw a clear sky overhead before he looked to the side and saw the building pulsate before it shattered, the pieces disappearing like water droplets on a hot surface.  
  
“Well…that took care of _that_.” Andrew said, then he was looking down at him. “How much of that do you remember?”  
  
And then Varian saw black.  
  
\--  
  
“He’s passed out.” Andrew sighed and carried Varian to the horses they’d come here with. “Let’s get him back to the castle.”  
  
“Are we going to talk about the…uh…”  
  
“Once he’s awake. No point in discussing it without him.” Andrew said as he draped Varian over the horse’s back and climbed up. “Come on, beautiful. Let’s get this sleeping kid to bed.” He coaxed the horse.  
  
They all got on their other horses and took off for the Capital. Then Andrew carried Varian in and to his room, passing by guards.  
  
“Is he alright?” One of them asked.  
  
“He’s just a little tuckered out. We took care of a threat to the Kingdom.” Andrew assured them, then walked on to Varian’s room. When he got there, he opened the door with one hand while balancing Varian with the other and then carried him to his bed. Then he removed his coat and boots but hesitated at the gloves.  
  
Honestly, he was afraid to. He’d seen just what happened when he did before. Still, he knew it hadn’t happened any other time, so he slipped off his gloves and then tucked him in to bed before sitting back in a chair with a sigh after removing his goggles and setting those aside, too.  
  
So, they battled a Disciple of Zhan Tiri today. Technically lost, but they were caught off-guard, didn’t have a chance to properly fight. And then Varian used…well, there was no mistaking the power. He had heard the legends and he knew the stories well. The power of decay, the Moonstone’s power. The power of darkness.  
  
Who knew that it rested inside such a sweet-looking kid Then again, he’d seen the cruelty he was capable of. Or, well, heard of it. He hadn’t really shown much cruelty since, but he guessed that that display earlier was…something like it.   
  
“So…what happened, huh?” Juniper asked, leaning against his door.  
  
“We’ll discuss it when he’s awake.” Andrew reminded her. “For now, get some rest. We accomplished our mission.”  
  
“You too, Drew.” She walked over and leaned on his shoulders. “He’ll be fine now. He’s stopped glowing.”  
  
Andrew sighed. “He’s gonna freak out.”  
  
“And Clementine is gonna tease him _forever_.” Juniper grinned.  
  
“Yes, yes she will.” Andrew nodded.   
  
\--  
  
 _Varian was in water. It was weird, but he wasn’t drowning even though he was in water. Even weirder, he was perfectly calm. He slowly unwrapped his arms from around himself and lowered his legs and then looked up above him, his hair drifting around himself, before he swam up and burst out of the water and into the moonlight. He swam to nearby land and climbed out before he looked up at the moon, feeling…strange, but also like it was familiar. He reached out a hand and felt the moonlight surround him like a mother’s embrace.  
  
And then he felt the warmth of the sun and looked over his shoulder to see the sun rising to the east, and with it was Rapunzel, standing on the opposite side of the bank. She was facing away from him. He felt a nudge from the moonlight and turned towards her, at the same time she turned to him.  
  
She looked surprised to see him, and they slowly made their way to each other, looking each other in the eyes just like in that strange world. They were both clothed in strange, robe-like clothing, Varian in black and blue and Rapunzel in green and gold. It looked beautiful on her. She was always so awe-inspiringly beautiful.  
  
She reached out a hand to him and he hesitated before he took it, letting her pull him closer to her before she led him into a dance.  
  
Not a word was said between them, and they moved in and out of the sun and moon sections of this strange island they were on as they danced. He wasn’t sure why he let her take him dancing, he should **hate** her, but it felt right and so he allowed it.  
  
Then her hair started to glow as they danced and so did his, her gold to his blue and it was strange and surreal but also felt right and he couldn’t explain it but he let her lead him along in the dance as he heard a strange choir singing and then they finished with them both pressed together, hands clasped, like at the end of a traditional dance of Corona despite all the different kinds of dances they just went through. She looked at him as their hair slowly stopped glowing and rested around their shoulders and then they were pulling apart and returning to the sun and the moon.  
_  
And then Varian woke up, staring blankly at the ceiling.  
  
“…That was weird.” He said, sitting up. He groaned and rubbed at his eyes and looked at the sunlight shining in the window. Looks like he’d slept the rest of the night away, and he was back on Corona so that must mean the other got him back safely. He got off the bed and went to a basin to splash water on his face.  
  
“ _Really_ weird.” He grabbed a towel to wipe off his face, then went about changing his clothes for the day and then putting on his accessories. After looking himself over to make sure he was nicely presentable clothing-wise, he went to the mirror and picked up the eyeliner, which he used to carefully draw a fake goatee on his face.  
  
He always found it a bit unfair he didn’t have proper facial hair yet. Other kids his age did! Until it grew it properly, he’d just have to make-do with this. He set the eyeliner down and checked himself over before he tied his scarf on around his neck and grabbed his coat to pull it on as he left the room.  
  
“Good morning, Advisor Varian.” One of the maids said as he passed her.  
  
“Morning.” He nodded in greeting and headed for the throne room, where he would be accompanying the King for the daily audiences. It felt kind of good to take Nigel’s place, the poor sap had dared to speak against him after the King and Queen were completely under his swap and, as a result, was thrown into prison with any other naysayers. The Captain of the Guard had left in search of Rapunzel and her group shortly after his takeover and hadn’t returned, but they were watching for them.  
  
“Varian!” Queen Arianna greeted. “Lord Andrew told us you were feeling unwell after your mission yesterday, are you feeling better?”  
  
“Much, Your Majesty, thank you for your kind concern.” Varian said, taking his place next to King Frederic.  
  
King Frederic smiled warmly to him and Varian forced a smile before he looked forward. “Let’s get this started.”  
  
With that, the audiences started.  
  
With the King and Queen under his complete compliant control and their memories erased of who he really was, Varian ensured that no one in the city would speak against him or insult him without being thrown into prison as a result or put in the stocks for a few hours. Still, that didn’t mean that he didn’t get dirty looks sent his way as the people came in for audiences with the King.  
  
The most _irritating_ part to them, probably, was that the King _always_ asked for Varian’s advice and his advice _actually worked_. So, they couldn’t even accuse him of being a bad advisor and try to get him ousted.  
  
When the audiences were over, King Frederic turned to him. “Thank you for being here, as always. I was concerned when you were brought home unconscious that I would have to do this without you.”  
  
“How could I leave you when you need me so much?” Varian smiled. “It’s time for you and Her Majesty to have your picnic in the courtyard, Your Majesty.” He reminded him.  
  
“Ah, of course! Ever the helpful one!” They both stood up and went off together. Varian walked after them and watched as they sat down where maids were setting up the picnic, then stood back keeping his distance.   
  
One thing he hadn’t counted on was the King and Queen forgetting about…each other, and therefore their love for each other. But, he tried to rekindle it by scheduling them little dates like this.  
  
“Having fun?” Andrew walked up to him.  
  
Varian looked up at him. “As much as usual.”  
  
“We need to talk.” Andrew nodded towards the castle.  
  
“I’ll inform His Majesty that I am needed elsewhere.” Varian walked over and knelt next to their picnic. “Apologizes for the interruption, Your Majesties, but something has come up and I am needed elsewhere.”  
  
“Oh, of course! We will be find here, go and do your important work.” King Frederic said cheerfully.  
  
“Good luck!” Queen Arianna said encouragingly.  
  
He stood up and smiled at them before he walked back to Andrew, his smile fading into a grimace. “Right. Let’s go.”  
  
Andrew chuckled. “Getting a little tired of pretending you like them?”  
  
“A bit.” He nodded.  
  
“Well, let’s talk about something else.” He wrapped his arm around his shoulders and led him along. “We need to talk about what happened yesterday.”  
  
“What happened?” Varian glanced away.  
  
“Yeah, in the House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow.” Andrew nodded.  
  
They went into the war room again and took their seats, Andrew closing the door behind them. “Alright, so, last night was crazy. First, Varian, I retain gloating rights about magic being real.” Clementine said, pointing at him.  
  
Varian sighed. “Fiiiine.”  
  
“That’s not why we’re here.” Juniper rolled her eyes. “We’re here to discuss what happened at the end of the night. Kid, how much of it do you remember?”  
  
Varian blinked. “Uhm…I…” He moved a hand to his head.  
  
 _Green vines, glowing blue, turning black.  
Matthews, terrified, growing closer.  
Varian removes his gloves, he can feel power pulsing in his fingertips.  
His hands grip the cultist’s wrists, Varian focuses, and then he’s glowing blue and then turning black and falling apart like clumps of wet sand.  
  
_“…Yeah.” He nodded, moving his hand down. “I remember. I killed him.”  
  
“Do you know how you did it?” Andrew asked him.  
  
Varian slowly shook his head.  
  
“Right.” Andrew nodded. “Do you know what the Moonstone Opal is?”  
  
Varian shook his head again. “Uhm…not a clue.”  
  
Andrew placed his hands on the table. “Alright, to put it simply, when the Sundrop Flower came down, it wasn’t alone. The moon also dropped a piece of itself onto the world, and it formed into the Moonstone Opal. While the Sundrop had the power of life, the Moonstone had the power of death. You used the decaying magic of the Moonstone to destroy the Disciple.”  
  
Varian raised an eyebrow. “But, that doesn’t make any sense. I’m…normal.”  
  
“Kid, you lit up like a lantern.” Juniper said flatly.  
  
“Besides that, if you _are_ the Moonstone, then it would explain your connection to Princess Rapunzel, the Sundrop.” Clementine chimed in.  
  
Varian thought of his strange dream and decided not to mention it. “How could I be the Moonstone, though? And, if I was, how am I using my powers without any incantation?”  
  
“I think it was a self-preservation thing.” Andrew said thoughtfully. “You went into a bit of a trance, kind of spooky.”  
  
“Yeah…spooky.” Varian sighed. “Okay, so maybe I _am_ the Moonstone. What do I do with this knowledge?”  
  
“You reach deeper into your connection and see if you can see through her eyes.” Clementine grinned. “Do you know how to meditate, Varian?”  
  
“I can teach you.” Juniper volunteered.  
  
Varian glanced away. “…I guess it’s worth a try. But, this information doesn’t leave this room.”  
  
“Of course. We don’t want the Coronans to know.” Andrew nodded.  
  
“Our little secret.” Kai nodded.  
  
“So, you should try doing that as soon as possible.” Maisie suggested. “It’d be nice if we had an idea of what Princess Sundrop is up to.”  
  
“Yeah.” Varian nodded. “In real-time, this time. Though,” he chuckled, “she came in handy for our little trap into the House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow, didn’t she?”  
  
“Well, then.” Juniper got up and walked over to him with a grin. “Let’s go to my room and we can get started.”  
  
“Juni, can you _not_ make that sound suggestive?” Andrew asked with an annoyed expression.  
  
She laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to try to spy on Rapunzel!


	3. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian decides to see just how connected he and Rapunzel are and reaches into her mind to see through her eyes, with the Saporians' help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney
> 
> ((Warning: Non-consensual possession))

“Relax…focus. Close your eyes and open your mind. Reach for the connection.” Clementine said as she and Juniper coaxed him through this. He was sitting on a pillow in Juniper’s room as Juniper played a soothing tune on some kind of string instrument, Clementine on a pillow in front of him. A candle was burning between them, and he had shed his coat and shirt a while ago, sitting shirtless as he concentrated on reaching for Rapunzel’s mind.  
  
It had been two weeks since they’d started these sessions, and between these and his duties as the Royal Advisor AND working on his memory-erasing alchemy, which he was planning to call Quirineon after his father, he didn’t need any coaxing into bed anymore.  
  
He could feel her, like the fluttering of a butterfly’s wing. He reached out, felt for that warmth, and pushed through.  
  
Suddenly, behind his closed eyes he was seeing a whole different landscape in front of him. It was barren and cold, where was she now? Black rocks littered the landscape, and there was an imposing castle covered in black rocks in the distance. Varian recalled seeing something similar to that on the scroll he’d translated before his time in prison.  
  
If Rapunzel noticed his presence, she gave no indication.   
  
“We made it.” Rapunzel said. It was strange, hearing her but not seeing her. “The Dark Kingdom.”  
  
“Yep. We just need to find a way to get the ol’ camper down there.” Eugene said from somewhere to Varian – Rapunzel’s – left.  
  
They heard a rolling sound and Rapunzel turned to see their colorful caravan rolling backwards towards a cliff. “Whoa, whoa! Wait, wait, wait!” She got to the caravan just as it fell over the cliff and crashed to pieces in the black rocks at the bottom of the cliff.  
  
It was, honestly, comical and he would’ve laughed if he didn’t think she’d hear him.  
  
“No! Not again!” Eugene cried, once again standing at Rapunzel’s left.  
  
“It served us well.” Said a voice Varian didn’t recognize – no, wait, he did. Lance, he heard him when he saw the visions.   
  
“Oh no! All my clean clothes!” The old man, Shorty, cried.  
  
Seriously, trying not to laugh here. It was like he was watching a comedy act.  
  
“Shorty, you didn’t _have_ clean clothes.” Lance stated.  
  
“Psh. Not with _that_ attitude, I didn’t.” The old man retorted.  
  
If this kept up any longer, Varian was going to have to withdraw. Luckily, Rapunzel’s attention went back to the castle and he didn’t have to endure the comedy act any longer.  
  
“Your destiny awaits, Princess.” Cassandra said from Rapunzel’s left as she walked closer to the side of the cliff facing the castle.  
  
“You sure you’re ready for this?” Eugene asked, coming up on her right, and Rapunzel turned to him.  
  
“I just wish I knew what _this_ is.” Rapunzel said, sounding both scared and confused and very distressed.  
  
Yeah, Varian would like to know, too. Can we get some answers here?  
  
“I mea,n” she went on, “Demanitus said if I _don’t_ grab the Moonstone, the black rocks will destroy _everything_.”  
  
Grab the _what_?! That didn’t make any sense, how could she “grab the Moonstone” if _he_ was the Moonstone? After all, he apparently had its powers, and he did the glowy stuff.  
  
“But, I have no _idea_ what to expect to happen to _me if I do_.” She finished.  
  
Oh, ooookay. _That’s_ why she was scared, then. Valid, Princess, completely valid. Still not worth losing yourself in a fantasy world forever, but valid.  
  
“I don’t know,” Cassandra said, drawing Rapunzel’s attention to her, “but, whatever happens, you won’t be facing it alone.”  
  
Eugene came to Rapunzel’s side as well and Rapunzel looked up at him. Varian hated seeing that loving smile on the man’s face. The last time he’d seen him, he’d wanted to kill him in battle, or just been staring him down coldly during his trial. He hated it. He used to look up to this man, used to want to be like him. Well, he’d replaced him with a “friend” that actually _cared about him.  
_  
Careful, don’t let your feelings slip through. Keep calm. Don’t alert the Princess to your presence.  
  
When Cassandra suddenly started to _sing_ , he decided it was time to back out.  
  
He opened his eyes and let out a groan. “Well, that was…interesting.”  
  
“What’d you find out?” Juniper grinned.  
  
“More than last time. Apparently, they’re going to get the ‘Moonstone’, but I thought _I_ was the Moonstone?” Varian frowned.  
  
“Good question. We should see about asking your father when we finally figure out how to free him.” Clementine said, raising an eyebrow.  
  
“Did she detect you?” Juniper asked.  
  
“No, but I wasn’t going to stick around for the impromptu friendship song.” He made a face. “I’ll go back in in a few minutes.”  
  
They laughed and he rolled his eyes. “You laugh, but it was cheesy as fuck. I was _not_ sticking around for it.”  
  
“Hey, maybe we should have our _own_ ‘friendship song’.” Juniper snickered. “Do they…do they do that a _lot_?”  
  
Varian shrugged. “I mean, I’ve done my _own_ singing, but not really any…friendship songs. Let’s change the subject. Where’s Andrew?” He looked around.  
  
“Probably collecting the crystals people have been mining for you.” Juniper stretched. “If you want to stop now, we can.”  
  
“No, I want to see what’s going on. I’m going back in.” He shifted his position a bit and then closed his eyes, focusing. Juniper started to play the music again and Clementine used magic to help him push inside as before.  
  
It was easier, this time. Thankfully, the singing seemed to be over.   
  
\--  
  
Hitchhiking in her mind in the back of it was one thing but being up front with Rapunzel while trying not to be detected was a whole other thing entirely. Still, he managed to keep himself calm and undetected and she carried on through the…what was it? The “Dark Kingdom”? Really? _That’s_ what they called the kingdom covered in _black rocks_? The “Dark Kingdom”?  
  
He had to stop for a bit to get food, which Andrew brought in, and while eating he got an update from Andrew about how things were going while he’d been busy spying on the Princess.  
  
“The candy-maker missed his quota, so we put him in the stocks for a few hours. His Majesty forgot to wear his crown to audiences today and I had to go get it for him before the doors could open.” Andrew said as he sat next to Varian. “And Her Majesty asked about you again, I told her you were well but had an important task.”  
  
“Thanks for taking care of things for me.” Varian said, setting down his dishes. “I better get back in there, last I saw they were getting on some kind of suspended air-trolley.”  
  
“Alright.” Andrew got up. “I’ll leave you to it. The crystals are in your lab when you’re ready.” He headed out of the room with the dishes.  
  
“Ready to start again?” Juniper asked, and Varian nodded before he closed his eyes. She started to play the music and he pushed on through. He didn’t need Clementine’s help this time, but the music kept him grounded. It also was a good indicator to him of when he was through, because he could no longer hear it once seeing through Rapunzel’s eyes.  
  
And, apparently, she was being shut out of the castle by Eugene. _Wow_ , he’d missed a lot.  
  
“I’m sorry, Rapunzel,” Eugene said, looking grim, “but, I won’t let you in.”  
  
Suddenly, the door shut between Rapunzel and Eugene and Varian _felt_ Rapunzel’s heart break in that moment. Wow, okay, that was a _little_ too intense.   
  
“Eugene,” Rapunzel started to bang her fists on the door, “let me in! Eugene!”  
  
Clearly, Varian had missed something big. But, judging by her confusion, so did Rapunzel. Why did Eugene decide to _betray_ her? This was _fascinating_ from his perspective, but the added effect of feeling her emotions was starting to bug him, so he pulled back juuuust enough to not feel them anymore.  
  
“’One of her company will turn against her’.” Rapunzel breathed, and he felt her disbelief and realization even though he’d drawn back a bit. “I can’t _believe_ this.”   
  
Soooo…she _expected_ to get betrayed, but not by Eugene. Got it.  
  
“Princess, listen to me.” Lance said from behind her. “I’ve known Eugene my entire life, and he has never – and I mean _never_ – loved anyone as much as he loves you.”  
  
And now we’re at the drama part of the show. Nice.  
  
“Yeah, Raps.” Cassandra chimed in. “Whatever he thinks he’s doing, he _must_ be doing it for _you_.”  
  
If she starts singing again, Varian is gonna leave.  
  
Pascal let out a little squeak near Rapunzel’s ear as she looked at the ground. Varian found himself missing Ruddiger, who had disappeared sometime after his takeover. He supposed that the critter had finally had enough of him, a complete takeover was the last straw.  
  
Rapunzel looked at Pascal, who nodded encouragingly, and then she turned to them – and a woman Varian didn’t recognize, wearing a belt with an emblem that he _did_ recognize. It was on his father’s armor. Was his father _involved_ here?  
  
“You guys are probably right,” Rapunzel said, though the seeds of doubt were planted, Varian could tell, “but, I _need_ to hear it from _him_.”  
  
“We have to hurry.” the woman that Varian didn’t recognize with the emblem that he did recognize said. _Adira_ , Rapunzel’s mind supplied, and he hoped she didn’t notice him digging around. “The King has my Shadow Blade,” _A sword made from a piece of a black rock that broke off decades ago_ , “which has the power to cut these rocks.”  
  
Ah, yes, the Shadow Blade from the Dark Kingdom, Land of the Obvious Names. Sure would’ve been nice to have a Shadow Blade when they were growing in Old Corona.  
  
“I know exactly what he’s going to do with it.” She said anxiously. “ _Destroy_ the Moonstone.”  
  
“Pascal, find a way inside,” Rapunzel said, focusing her attention on her pet again, “get to Eugene, and don’t let him _anywhere_ near that stone.”  
  
She turned and watched as the lizard hopped off her shoulder and climbed up the door. “The rest of us need to find a back entrance or something.” Rapunzel went on, “this _can’t_ be the only way into the castle.”  
  
Ah, ever the optimist. But she had a point; castles had multiple entrances and exits, not to mention secret passageways.   
  
“I am afraid the King has sealed all entrances to the—” Adira started, and then suddenly the ground was shaking, Rapunzel’s hair was _glowing_ , and new black rocks were sprouting up. They spread and spread, damaging the land around, until a secret stairway was revealed.  
  
“That’ll do it.” Rapunzel said as Varian thought the same thing.  
  
The rocks were still spreading, though, and the ground was still shaking. Rapunzel grabbed onto her hair and focused as she knelt down, and Varian felt something inside of him reacting to it before her hair stopped glowing and the shaking and rocks stopped.  
  
“Raps, are you okay?” Cassandra placed her hand on hers.  
  
“Yeah,” Rapunzel replied, sounding worn out, “I’m fine.” She stood up and helped pull Cassandra to her feet. “I think we’ll be okay.”  
  
One thing that Varian had learned, and Rapunzel was about to, was to _never_ say things like that. The Universe _always_ found a way to make you look like an idiot. The ground opened up underneath her and she dropped, as well as the others. She untied her hair and saved herself and Cassandra just in time, while Lance and Adira landed on black rocks jutting out of the wall of the cavern below.   
  
“Great!” Cassandra said with exasperation as Rapunzel looked down. “A sewer full of lava.”  
  
Yeah, like the “Dark Kingdom” couldn’t get _any_ more dramatic. Varian watched through Rapunzel’s eyes as she and Cassandra dangled over said lava.  
  
“Well, good news,” Adira said, drawing Rapunzel’s attention to her, “ _this_ will lead us into the castle.”  
  
Rapunzel swung her and Cassandra onto another black rock closer to the ground and they safely landed before looking ahead of them at the sewer full of lava and black rocks. “Lava sewer it is.”  
  
 _Can’t be any worse than a death-trap riddled tunnel under a city, right, Princess?_ Varian thought, then silently scolded himself and hoped she didn’t hear that.  
  
She moved a hand though her hair. “I’ve been through worse, like the Herz Der Sonne tunnels.” She stated, and he wondered if she took his commentary as just her subconscious.  
  
“There is literal lava beneath us.” Cassandra pointed out.  
  
“Yeah, but…I got this.” Rapunzel looked at her. “ _We_ got this.”  
  
\--  
  
The trek through the sewers was long and hot and, frankly, Varian was glad he was only _watching_ it, not actually there.  
  
“How much further?” Rapunzel asked as she struggled to get through the same path Adira was leaping like a cricket through.  
  
“Another couple-hundred yards and we’ll be directly below the throne room.” Adira replied.  
  
Oh, fun, Rapunzel’s hair was glowing again. It seemed to be doing that a lot here. And, of course, black rocks came out and ambushed them and they had to avoid dying by either being crushed by rubble, impaled by black rocks, or melting in lava.  
  
“We’d better get to that Moonstone soon.” Cassandra said anxiously. “I don’t know how much longer we can _survive_ down here.”  
  
“ _I’m_ gonna go with ‘not much longer’.” Lance chimed in.  
  
“We must turn back and find another way.” Adira told them.  
  
 _Turn back? After we’ve come this far? May as well just push through to the end._ Varian helpfully supplied.  
  
Rapunzel remained where she was, even when the others started to go back. Then the black rocks started to glow and lower into a path.  
  
“We’re trapped!” Cassandra cried out behind her.  
  
“No!” Rapunzel said, getting down onto the path. “No, we’re not trapped! The rocks are working _with_ us! They’re pushing us toward the Moonstone.” She walked to the end of it, and then her hair started to glow again and drifted in front of her, summoning more black rocks to create a path.  
  
“Huh. I’d say that’s a pretty good theory.” Lance commented.  
  
The black rocks completely covered the lava, and it was safe to walk on them and cool to the touch. Rapunzel looked back at the others, then followed the path with the group.  
  
At the end of the path was a tree of black rocks stretching up into the ceiling. Rapunzel and the others climbed up it, getting closer and closer to their goal.  
  
Varian felt himself be gently withdrawn and looked up with a startled expression as Andrew knelt next to him and offered him a drink. Varian wiped sweat from his brow and smiled gratefully before taking a drink.  
  
“Everything okay?” Juniper asked. “You started sweating a lot and were muttering about heat.”  
  
Huh, apparently he _was_ physically affected by what Rapunzel was going through, then.  
  
“Lava. Sewer full of lava.” He handed back the empty glass and Andrew patted his shoulder. “Thanks.”  
  
“Going back in?” Andrew asked.  
  
“They’re so close. I _can’t_ miss this.” Varian said excitedly.  
  
“Alright.” Andrew rubbed his head and then stood back. Varian nodded and closed his eyes, focusing again.  
  
“He has come to embrace his destiny, just as we _all_ have.” A man Varian didn’t recognize was saying, facing away from the group.  
  
“The Moonstone chamber is just through those doors.” Adira whispered to the group as they all carefully hid behind black rocks to not be noticed by the man.  
  
“Okay,” Rapunzel said, sounding a little out of breath, “I’ll need a distraction before I can slip in there.”  
  
“No way,” Cassandra whispered, “you’re _not_ going in alone. Who _knows_ what’s in there?”  
  
“Rapunzel _should_ go in alone.” Adira informed them, and they turned their attention to her. “Only the Sundrop can access the Moonstone’s great power.”  
  
Well, apparently not. Not if Varian apparently could access it, a fact Rapunzel didn’t know because he kept his own mind guarded while in hers. Then again, maybe he has a special reason. After all, he’d always wondered about the odd streak of blue in his hair and his black hair that didn’t seem to come from either side of his family.  
  
Hell, there were times he’d even wondered if he was adopted.  
  
But then, if—WHOA! Random memory bombardment! Rapunzel was apparently thinking of a moment where she and Cassandra were talking and Cassandra, distressed, asked her when she’d stopped trusting her judgement. While Varian was still reeling from that, Rapunzel spoke.  
  
“Cass and I will go.” She said firmly, earning a disappointed frown from the woman. “Adira, you’re with Lance.” Yeah, she didn’t look too pleased about that.  
  
Lance got overly excited and nearly gave away their position by attempting to pose for her and knocking over the helmet of the suit of armor he was leaning against.  
  
“You two run interference against the King so we can slip by.” Rapunzel said, apparently deciding not to comment on it while Varian was trying not to laugh.  
  
The man, by the way, had stopped talking to himself a little while ago. It was pretty clear he knew they were there by now, and Varian considered alerting Rapunzel but decided to just let her handle it. He was content sitting back and watching the show.  
  
“Okay, on my count.” Rapunzel whispered as she pushed the door open wider. “One, two—”  
  
Suddenly, the man was throwing an _axe_ at them and Rapunzel screamed as she moved to avoid it. “My next throw _will_ find its target.” He said, even though he’d just thrown his axe and would have to go and retrieve it. Unless he had another axe hidden under that cloak, that is. “You were warned to stay away.”  
  
“Edmund.” Adira said, and Varian noted the name for his personal mental archives.  
  
“I have nothing to say to _you_ , Adira!” King Edmund roared.  
  
Wow, _they_ had history.  
  
Lance ran at the man like a wild bull and slammed into him, but all he did was hurt himself. The man looked annoyed at the interruption but otherwise unaffected. A formidable foe, then. And very _tall_ , Varian realized. He towered over Lance by quite a bit.  
  
Lance let out a whimper before he was backhanded and flung across the room, hitting the floor hard. Cassandra tried her luck next and was whacked hard and knocked out. Then he just stepped over her like she was a log in his path, his attention on Rapunzel.  
  
Adira moved between them, pushing Rapunzel back a bit, then ran forward and started to fight the man herself, swinging her legs around to try to hit him as he dodged. With how easily he did it, Varian got the impression she’d fought him many times before. He noticed the same emblem on the man’s cloak and realized that they all seemed to be from the same group. Was _this_ what his father was _hiding_ from him? Was he part of a _cult_ this whole time?  
  
She lost, and the man’s attention was back on Rapunzel. Was she going to die here?   
  
“Your Majesty, please.” Rapunzel started.   
  
He didn’t want her to die here. Not until she’d come home and seen what he’d taken from her.   
  
Her hair started to glow again and she stepped towards the door. “The Moonstone knows I’m close. I _have_ to go.” She pleaded as her hair started to pull her along.  
  
“No!” The man ran to stop her and blocked her way with his large, hulking mass. “No one may enter that room!”  
  
“I’m going in, and you _don’t_ want to get in my way!” She said firmly.  
  
“You’re not getting _past_ me.” He said, taking an aggressive stance.  
  
“Yes, she is!” Eugene yelled from somewhere to Rapunzel’s right. She looked over and saw him running in to save the day. “Let her in! She’s the Sundrop!” He ran to Rapunzel’s side and pulled her close.  
  
“Eugene!” Rapunzel said with relief.   
  
Good to know his betrayal was short-lived.  
  
“Rapunzel, I am _so sorry_!” Eugene said, focusing his attention on her. “I just thought—”  
  
“There’s no time for that.” Rapunzel said, cutting him off and gently cupping his face before she focused back on her task. “We _have_ to get to that stone! This place is coming down around us!” She looked around, then back at him.  
  
“But, the Moonstone must be _destroyed_ , son!” King Edmund declared.  
  
Excuse me, did he just say “son”?  
  
“Son?” Rapunzel asked with a smile on her face.  
  
“ _Son_?” Cassandra asked in disbelief.  
  
“You finally got adopted!” Lance said happily.  
  
Did that make Eugene a fucking _prince_?  
  
“Look, I’ll fill you all in later!” Eugene said, walking over to pull his father – apparently – away.  
  
“Oh!” King Edmund protested the delay.  
  
“Thumbnail—I’m a prince. Probably.” He looked over his shoulder at Rapunzel with a smile before he continued leading his thoroughly distracted father away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With the King out of the way, it should be free access to the Moonstone now, right?


	4. 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fight for the Moonstone continues, and Varian decides to help out a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney
> 
> ((Warning: Rapunzel absolutely did NOT consent to this possession!))

Rapunzel turned and ran for the door, which started to glow as she approached it. This wasn’t the Moonstone’s glow, though, Varian knew that _too well_ , unfortunately. This was something else. The ground was shaking, her hair stopped glowing and fell down again and she turned to the others anxiously.  
  
“What’s goin’ on?” Lance asked, frightened.  
  
Something _fascinating_ , Varian expected.  
  
“It _can’t_ be...” King Edmund said in disbelief.  
  
“What is it?” Rapunzel asked, walking away from the still-glowing door.  
  
“For centuries,” the King started, gesturing to the statues around them, “my ancestors have sworn to protect this threshold.”   
  
Varian noticed that the statues all had the same emblem as Adira and the King.  
  
“And now, their spirits have risen to uphold that oath!” The man went on.  
  
I’m sorry, what? Did he just say—ohhhhh, god, the statues’ eyes were glowing the same color as the door. Okay! We are back in _spooky_ territory! _Man_ , cultists were _weird_ …  
  
And now there are ghosts.  
  
“Not…necessarily how I imagined meeting your family.” Rapunzel said to Eugene nervously.  
  
Varian pulled back a bit and just watched as Rapunzel and the others mostly avoided the ghosts, who were apparently hell-bent on killing them.  
  
“So, you have a _dad_?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Yeah, turns out you weren’t the _only_ one who had a destiny waiting here.” Eugene replied.  
  
Rapunzel turned and ran for the door again, evading King Edmund as he tried to stop her and barely noticing when Eugene knocked him out of the way to protect her.   
  
“No! She mustn’t be let in!” King Edmund cried.  
  
“Listen, Your Majesty—Father—I—I don’t know what to call you,” Eugene floundered a bit, “but you have to stop these spirits!”  
  
Rapunzel dodged another ghost trying to attack her, looking towards the door. “I have to get _in_ there…”  
  
“Even if I could,” King Edmund started, “she must _never_ enter that room!”  
  
 _We might have to actually fight, Princess._ Varian remarked.   
  
“Ugh, ever since that _dream_ , I can’t stop _thinking_ about him.” Rapunzel muttered. “But, you’re right, Varian.” She reached back to let down her hair. “I wonder what you would do if _you_ were here…” She swung her hair to whip a ghost that was about to bite off Cassandra’s head and he vanished.  
  
 _Nice one. But it’s coming back._ He spotted the ghost coming out of the statue again out of the corner of her eye.  
  
They spotted Lance knocking Adira out of danger as Rapunzel dodged around the ghost. “Are you okay?” Lance asked Adira.  
  
“I had it under control!” She snapped irritably as she turned away from him. Then she sighed. “Lance…thank you.”  
  
Huh, looks like the cultist woman had a softer side. Good to know.  
  
Of course, their tender moment was interrupted by a ghost attacking them, and Rapunzel’s attention was focused on something else so Varian didn’t get to see what happened next. She and Cassandra kept close together, and soon they were surrounded by ghosts.  
  
“They keep coming back!” Lance cried in terror.  
  
“Any advice?” Rapunzel muttered. It took Varian a bit to realize she was talking to _him_ , and he didn’t reply. “What am I saying, he’s not really here.”  
  
“Rapunzel, who are you talking to?” Cassandra asked as she slashed at one of the ghosts.  
  
“Uh, no one. Myself.” Rapunzel sighed. “I guess.” She struck at a couple ghosts with her hair.  
  
Things were chaotic at this point. Shorty came in with the guard horse Maximus and they joined the battle, Eugene was grappling with his own father, and they were still fighting ghosts.  
  
Eugene suddenly appeared at her side. “Couldn’t get through those ghosts, huh?”  
  
No, no, they just kept coming back. Crazy, huh? It’s like you can’t kill the dead.  
  
Or can you?  
  
“Believe it or not, they are _surprisingly stubborn_.” Rapunzel replied, looking up at the ghosts that surrounded them.  
  
“Go figure.” Eugene said cheerfully.  
  
The others got herded over by the ghosts and then they were penned in, surrounded by the ghosts. Maximus kicked one of them that charged and then they all started to fight back again, with pitiful results.   
  
Varian couldn’t help but think that the Saporians would do a better job with their magic. Unfortunately, they weren’t here and so Rapunzel’s group had to try to fend off the ghosts without magic.  
  
Magic…her _hair_ was connected to the _Moonstone_ …if he could use her hair as a _conduit_ for _his powers_ …  
  
Then he had something that would work against them _very well_.  
  
He reached forward and focused as Rapunzel swung out her hair. He saw it glow blue and then turn black for a bit before it returned to normal after the ghost crumbled apart like wet sand and then vanished.  
  
“What was _that_?!” Cassandra demanded.  
  
“I-I don’t know!” Rapunzel cried as Varian silently congratulated his progress.   
  
“Well, do it again!” Eugene said as he sliced at another ghost. “That one isn’t coming back!”  
  
“I don’t know how I did it _before_!” Rapunzel cried.  
  
She swung her hair at another ghost and Varian reached through again, grinning a bit as he saw her hair react again. The ghost met the same fate as the previous one, and then her hair returned to normal. He focused harder, pushing further, and Rapunzel gasped softly as he found himself able to control her body. Her hair glowed blue and then turned black again and he swung her hair to strike at another ghost, then another, thoroughly enjoying himself.  
  
“Rapunzel, what’s gotten _into_ you?!” Cassandra asked as the others noticeably kept their distance.  
  
Funny she asked that.  
  
“I-I don’t know!” Rapunzel cried. “It’s like something’s _controlling_ me!”  
  
“The Moonstone?” Eugene asked, looking towards the door.  
  
“I don’t know, but this is _freaking me out_!” Rapunzel cried as Varian made her strike another ghost.  
  
Finally, the ghosts were defeated and Varian released control, letting Rapunzel act on her own again. Truthfully, he felt _exhausted_. But also _excited_ , because _wow_ , that was _cool_!  
  
King Edmund walked over to them and they turned to him defensively. He was staring at her in disbelief, a mixture of awe and fear in his eyes, and then he cleared his throat. “Our family…is just _awful_.”  
  
“Heh, yeah.” Eugene nodded, then turned to Rapunzel. “Looks like the way is clear, Sunshine.”  
  
Rapunzel nodded, then looked at her hair before moving a hand to her head. “…That was…weird.”  
  
“Well, whatever it was, it’s over.” Cassandra shrugged. “Maybe the Moonstone just got impatient?”  
  
Rapunzel clutched at her hair. “…Is _that_ it?” She whispered. “Or is it something else?” She walked towards the door. “Is it _you_ , Varian?”  
  
Varian didn’t reply, just sat back and watched. Let her have her suspicions, that was fine. He wouldn’t confirm them. Besides, he was feeling too tired to make any comments, anyway. He’d just watch her take the Moonstone and then withdraw.  
  
“I was wrong. This is for the best.” King Edmund turned to Rapunzel. “It’s all on you, now.”  
  
She smiled and hugged him, then walked to the door, with Eugene and Cass by her side. “You ready for this?” Eugene asked her.  
  
She pushed the doors open. “I’m ready to face my destiny.”  
  
They walked through and Varian felt a rush of power through him as soon as they were in the room with the Moonstone. Wow, this was…intense.   
  
“We made it, guys.” Rapunzel said in awe as she looked around.  
  
She stopped at the edge of a broken bridge and then her hair glowed and floated up above her and black rocks came out to create a bridge for her as she kept walking, moving closer and closer to the shining stone in the little cage across from her.  
  
She reached it and looked back at Cassandra, who had hung back looking…conflicted. If Varian was more awake, he might think of theories as to why she would be, but he was honestly tired out by controlling Rapunzel to fight the ghosts.   
  
Cassandra smiled and Rapunzel walked over to her. “Look, I _know_ these last few months haven’t been easy for us.” She took Cassandra’s hands in hers, looking down at their joined hands, then looked up at her and held up their hands between them. “But, I wanna thank you for everything.” She let go of her hands and threw her arms around her friend, closing her eyes.   
  
“Okay, Rapunzel.” Cassandra said from the right of Rapunzel’s closed eyes. “It’s time.”  
  
Varian noted that she _didn’t_ _return_ the hug, but if Rapunzel noticed then she didn’t think anything of it. Maybe this was _normal_ for her, to be detached.  
  
Rapunzel pulled away from her and walked to the Moonstone, passing by Eugene and Pascal as she walked.  
  
“This is it, Rapunzel.” Eugene said, taking her hand. “Now, go get your destiny.”  
  
Though, if you think about it, shouldn’t that be _Varian’s_ destiny? Ah well, doesn’t matter. He didn’t care about things like destiny.  
  
Rapunzel kissed Eugene’s hand, then placed it on her cheek. “I love you.”  
  
He kissed her temple and then she stroked Pascal’s nose before letting go of Eugene’s hand and walking back to the cage housing the Moonstone.  
  
The cage glowed and then then opened up, the Moonstone floating into the air above it, waiting, _wanting_. Varian could feel its power from inside of Rapunzel’s mind, and he used her as a shield as Rapunzel got closer and closer. She reached out a hand for it, ready to take it…  
  
And then a gloved hand snatched it instead.  
  
“Cassandra?!” Rapunzel cried, noticing that she’d snuck up behind her. “What are you doing?!”  
  
Well. _That_ was an unexpected development.  
  
Cassandra tightened her grip around the Moonstone and Varian tensed, feeling the Moonstone fighting her hold. Rapunzel’s hair stopped glowing and fell around her, the power of the Moonstone blocked from her.  
  
“I’m fulfilling my destiny!” Cassandra declared, fighting the Moonstone.  
  
Gee, maybe it wouldn’t be _fighting_ you if it was really yours to take, hm?  
  
The Moonstone sent out a wave of energy and wind and Rapunzel was thrown back with Eugene and Pascal. They watched as Cassandra continued to fight with the Moonstone, even as it _electrocuted her_ , and then slammed it to her chest.  
  
She screamed as she was consumed in a blue and white light, black rocks stabbing out of the ground around them. She lifted into the air and her clothes started to shatter, replaced by some bodysuit that covered all of her body but her head. When it was over, she had the Moonstone sitting on her chest, in plain view, and her hair and eyes were glowing blue.  
  
“I tried to warn you, Rapunzel.” Cassandra chuckled darkly. “You have to be _careful_ who you _trust_.”  
  
Wow. Somehow, Varian did _not_ expect the ever-loyal Lady-in-Waiting to be the one to betray Rapunzel.  
  
“Cassandra! Why?!” Rapunzel cried.  
  
“When I was separated from you in The House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow, I was shown a vision.” Cassandra explained. “I opened a door and came out into a strange place, a cottage in the woods by a waterfall. Inside, I saw a little girl – a young _me_ – with her mother. I saw her mother leave her alone for hours, and then the Royal Guard came at night. And then, I saw her mother – MY MOTHER – across the bridge, holding a blanket with a child with glowing, golden hair in her arms! She cut the bridge and left me with the Royal Guard as she fled!”  
  
“What…” Rapunzel stammered. “You saw… _all of this_ in The House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow?”  
  
When? While Rapunzel and Varian were stuck in Fantasy Land?

  
“I saw _everything_ , Rapunzel.” Cassandra said furiously.  
  
“Cass…” Rapunzel started, trying to reach her with her words, “if what you’re saying is true, it means—”  
  
“It means that _I’m_ Gothel’s daughter, and your _destiny_ belongs to _me._ ” Cassandra said, stepping forward.  
  
Wait.  
  
Hold on.  
  
Hold the fuck on.  
  
Okay…he needed to withdraw.  
  
Varian opened his eyes and groaned, holding his head. “Whoooooooooa, okay. Okay. That’s…that’s a thing.”  
  
“What is?” Juniper asked, pausing in her playing.  
  
“I had _no_ idea Old Lady Gothel even _had_ a daughter, but apparently Cassandra is her daughter. Also, she just took the Moonstone, so…that’s fun.” He shook his head. “But, heh, I tapped into that crazy power I used on Matthews when Rapunzel was having trouble fighting some ghosts. Controlled her like a puppet, too!”  
  
“That is _awesome_.” Juniper grinned. “Need some more water? You were glowing like a lantern the entire time.”  
  
“Yes, please.” He held out his hand and she poured water out of the pitcher to pass it to him. He drank it greedily and then swiped sweat from his brow. “I’m gonna go back in in a bit, I just…phew. What a…wow. She never… _never_ mentioned having kids. _Miss Gothel_.”  
  
Juniper chuckled. “So, did she detect you at all?”  
  
“Well, I mean, she had her suspicions after I literally _took over her_ , but I think she thought it was the Moonstone. And I’d been dropping little comments here and there, but she thought it was just her own head. So, I doubt it.” He shrugged.  
  
Juniper shrugged. “Well, when you’re ready to start again, let me know.” She picked up her own drink and took a swig.  
  
“Is that alcohol?” He raised an eyebrow.  
  
“I’m an adult.” She shrugged.  
  
“Andrew said not to drink around me.” Varian reminded her.  
  
“Andrew doesn’t need to know.” She offered him her cup. “Here, try it.”  
  
He looked at the door, as if he expected Andrew to come in, then shook his head. “I need my mind clear for this.”  
  
“Okay. We’ll do it later.” She set her cup down and played a few notes.  
  
He ran his hands through his sweat-soaked hair and nodded. “Let’s get back to it, then.”  
  
The door opened and Andrew came in. “Varian, I just found out one of the citizens took one of our balloons two days ago and fled for help from the princess. What do we do with the ones that assisted?” He asked, leaning against the door.  
  
“How did we take _two_ days to notice…ugh. Double their quota and send them to the mines.” Varian said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’ll keep an eye on the Princess and find out if she gets the message.”  
  
“You got it.” Andrew gave him a thumbs-up and left, closing the door behind him.  
  
Varian sighed and then got up to replace the candle, which had all but melted down to the bottom. “Let’s go back in.” He said, lighting the candle.  
  
Juniper chuckled. “You look _exhausted_.”  
  
“ _I’ll_ sleep when _she_ does.” He sat back down and closed his eyes, focusing, as Juniper started to play her music again. He focused until the music faded away and then he was looking through Rapunzel’s eyes again.  
  
The _first_ thing he noticed, once snug in her mind again, was the absolute _pain_ she was in, emotionally. She was shattered, completely heartbroken. And, judging by the lack of Cassandra around, she’d left them and took the Moonstone with her.  
  
“Alright! Up and at them, everybody!” Rapunzel said with forced cheer. “The Moonstone’s gone, so no use sticking around _this_ dreary place!”  
  
Oh yeah, she’s upset. Then again, Varian did _not_ blame her.  
  
Eugene came to her side. “Hey, Sunshine! I couldn’t help but notice you’re doing that…thing.”   
  
“’That thing’?” She asked with the same forced cheer.  
  
“You know, the thing where you act like everything’s peachy, when clearly it’s…” He faltered and cleared his throat before reaching for her. “Sweetheart, what Cass did—”  
  
“Yeah! That was _bad_!” Rapunzel said in a creepily cheerful way. “Anyway, moving on.” She walked past him, avoiding the conversation.  
  
“Eh…what?” Eugene asked as she walked away from him.  
  
“Okay, gang. We need to get out of here.” Rapunzel declared. “Any ideas?”  
  
“Well, we could just fly off in that balloon.” Shorty said, pointing past them.  
  
Ah, _just in time_.  
  
“A balloon is a _great_ idea. Heh.” Rapunzel said, apparently not realizing what he said. “If we _had_ —"  
  
 _Look behind you._ Varian nudged her as Eugene tapped her shoulder.  
  
She turned and saw one of the Saporian balloons floating towards them. “Whoa! A balloon!”  
  
It landed, prompting everyone to be on their guard, and then the mime, Ulf, came out. Rapunzel ran towards him and hugged him tightly with a laugh. “I didn’t know that you ballooned! How did you _find_ us? What are you _doing_ here? Did someone _send_ you?”  
  
So, Ulf the Mime had gone to find the Princess for help. _This_ should be interesting.  
  
“Why did they send _you_ , specifically?” Eugene asked, walking over to them.  
  
“Yeah. Answer _that_ one.” Lance chimed in.  
  
“Gentlemen,” Shorty spoke up, “I believe I can be of some incontinence, as I am _fluid_ in Ulf.” He fell off the horse than walked over to the mime to begin translating as he started to make some movements. “There’s trouble in Corona. Invaders from a foreign land! The people of Corona are scared, so Ulf followed the rocks here.” He paused, looking at the mime. “…Now, he’s just standing still.”  
  
“Guys, there’s _trouble_ in _Corona_.” Rapunzel said anxiously. “We need to get back as _soon as possible._ ”  
  
They all got on and fired up the balloon. Varian smiled and withdrew, letting out a sigh as he opened his eyes again.  
  
“Back so soon?” Juniper asked.  
  
Varian stood up and stretched. “Ulf the Mime arrived to tell the Princess that Corona is in trouble. It took him two days to get there.” He lowered his arms and then put out the candle before grabbing his shirt and coat and putting them on, followed by his gloves, belts and goggles. “Let’s go tell Andrew that we need to prepare a welcome back party for her.” He grinned.  
  
She got up and then they headed out of her room together.  
  
A couple months ago, they had met in her strange Fantasy Land, in a Corona that was perfect and her father was happy and carefree and everything was going her way. Now they were going to meet again in Corona, where her father is happy and carefree and everything is going _Varian’s_ way. And he can’t wait to see the look on her face when she finds out.  
  
He chuckled to himself and Juniper raised an eyebrow. “What’s so funny, kid?”  
  
“Oh,” He grinned. “Just anticipating the arrival of the _dear_ Princess Rapunzel.” He looked at her. “Have our people watching for their return. When they arrive, apprehend the mime and sent him to the mines to work.”  
  
“Ah, so scary.” Juniper laughed. “As you wish, Moonstone.” She nudged him.  
  
“Yeah…on _that_ note? I think _Cassandra_ and I need to _talk_.” Varian said, narrowing his eyes as he walked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's coming home! Time to prepare something special for her to welcome her back!


	5. 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel returns to Corona, but things have...changed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

It took two days to get to the Dark Kingdom from Corona, and Ulf was pushing the balloon as fast as it would go. Rapunzel sighed as she resigned herself to a two-day trip back and decided that she would take some rest. She felt… _exhausted_. She curled up next to Eugene, who was also resting, and Lance took the controls to let them rest. Their little group just kept shrinking…somewhere out there, Cassandra was running wild with the Moonstone, and she…she was trying not to think about Cassandra.  
  
Think about something else, like Varian. She had heard his voice in her head on the trip into the Dark Kingdom, and then she’d lost complete control of her body. She recalled the strange world that they’d both been trapped in, how he’d been able to find the loophole way before she did, how he was so much better at banishing illusions, how he was always one step ahead of Matthews and watched over Rapunzel to keep her on track.  
  
They never figured out how they were in each others’ dreams, how he’d been pulled into the same strange world as her. She hadn’t brought up the dream since coming out of it, and because she hadn’t mentioned Varian, the others eventually forgot.  
  
But, she never did. And now…  
  
She looked at her hands, closing her eyes. She could almost picture Varian’s gloved hands around her hands, his body against her back, moving her as he wished and guiding her to fight the ghosts. She recalled him vanishing from her mind-world in that blue light, the same blue light that lit up her usually-golden hair before it turned black and _deadly_. She hadn’t known what was going on, or what to do, but something did. Was it the Moonstone? Or was it…  
  
If it _was_ Varian, then he’d helped her again, with no gain for himself, no risk involved. Why would he help her, if he still felt so coldly for her as he did in that world? Maybe…maybe he really had warmed up to her? Maybe their shared experience had gotten him to be good?  
  
Maybe, if that was the case, she could get his help saving Corona. She brought her hands to her chest, curling her fingers as she imagined his hands in hers.   
  
She drifted off like that.  
  
\--  
  
 _Rapunzel was in fire. It licked at her body, burned around her, but it didn’t hurt. It was warm, but not too hot. It felt…comfortable. She slowly got up and walked out of the flames, onto a sandy, sunlight beach. She felt eyes on her and turned to see half of the island was covered by the night, the moon shining down. And in its light…  
  
She’d had this dream before but didn’t think anything of it. Dreams were just…dreams. But, not for her and Varian, were they? She felt like she was drowning, but also…comfortable. It was strange. This wasn’t the hostile dreams they shared before she left on her trip.  
  
She was clothed in a beautiful green robe with gold trimmings. Varian, across from her, was in a similar outfit, black with blue trimmings. She looked up at the sun, squinting a bit, wondering if it wanted the same as before from her. She felt a nudge and moved towards the night. At the same time, Varian walked towards the day.  
  
He was taller than she last saw him. He always seemed to be in these new dreams. But, he’d said it himself, almost a year had passed. He’d grown.   
  
This time, Varian offered his hand first, a ghost of a smile on his face. She reached out and took it and he pulled her into a dance, his fingers laced with hers. He moved with her, twisting, turning, pulling and pushing, pressed together and pulling away. He held her against him, her back to his chest, and they moved as one, as if she was his puppet. He rested his head against her shoulder as they moved together and then she was turned to face him as they kept dancing, never letting go of each other.  
  
She wanted to speak, but nothing would come out. She wanted to stop, but she just kept dancing. She was frightened…but fascinated. Their hair started to glow and she gasped as he let go of her hands to lift her into the air, looking up at her as his hair drifted around his head, before he swung her around and dipped her low, his hands once again finding hers as he pulled her back up.  
  
His blue eyes gazed into her green ones and she found it hard to breathe, she couldn’t look away. When had he grown so much? Was his hair longer? He was taller, she knew, but she never really thought about his hair. His grip was so strong, so firm. His hands had grown bigger, and he seemed more sure of himself, more confident.   
  
He pulled her closer to him, their lips inches apart, and she felt strange that she didn’t hate it. That it felt so wrong but so… **right**. She lowered her head and then they stopped dancing but didn’t pull away. He leaned in, his lips brushing her ear and making her feel warm.  
  
“See you soon, Princess.” _  
  
She gasped awake, startling Eugene awake in the process. She looked at him to apologize, but he was already back to sleep. Relieved, she brought her hands to her head and let out a small keening noise, her face red as she thought about how _close_ she’d come to k-k-kissing _Varian_. She was brought back to that time in King Herz Der Sonne’s tunnels, when they were being pushed together by a trap that would have killed them if Pascal hadn’t saved them. They were so _close_ , if they hadn’t turned their heads at _that moment_ , they would’ve…  
  
She slowly got up and went to stand at the wall of the basket, looking out at the landscape as they sped by it. She looked to the side and smiled a bit, walking over to tap Lance on the shoulder. “Get some rest, I’ve got this.” She said, and he gratefully gave up the controls.  
  
Her mind was swirling right now. Varian and Cass both occupied her mind, and then that dream…why was Varian in the dream, why was he glowing, why was his hair blue like Cassandra’s now was? And why was he under the moon’s light like she was under the sun’s?   
  
She tightly gripped the levers, staring ahead of her. Thinking of Cassandra brought her heartache, and she looked down to see if she could glimpse her friend at all. She couldn’t. She was gone too far, too fast.   
  
She couldn’t wait to see Varian again. She had so many things to ask him, so many things to tell him. They’d left so many unanswered questions between them when they last met, when they worked together to escape that world. It was almost scary how well they worked together. And now…if that _was_ him guiding her, helping her fight the ghosts…she wasn’t as scared of what happened. She clasped her hands together, closing her eyes, picturing him holding her like in the dream. Then she got flustered and quickly went back to holding the levers.  
  
Ulf walked over and mimed something, but she didn’t understand what he was saying. Shorty was fast asleep and couldn’t translate. She sighed and focused on her driving, looking forward to being home.  
  
\--  
  
The two days couldn’t pass fast enough. She almost cheered as she saw Corona in the distance and then they were passing over the wall, passing over the woods, over the city. She looked relieved as she didn’t see any sign of the trouble Ulf mentioned, no strange boats or anything or even damage to the city.  
  
They set down in town and cheered. “Finally!” Eugene got out of the basket. “No offense to any of you people, but we have been together _way_ too long, and I need a break from your faces.” He leaned in a bit and chuckled. “Except for you, of course, Rapunzel.”  
  
She stepped out with a smile and looked around with a sigh. “I can’t _believe_ how much I missed _home_! Home!” She started to run. “Ah, how I’ve missed everything _so_ much! Oh, I’ve missed the bookstore!” She pointed to it and then ran over to hit the sign, then ran on, letting a squeal as she sat on the fountain. “And I missed the fountain!” She played with the water and got up to keep running around. “Oh, I missed the sweet shoppe and bakery! Yum!” She pulled Eugene to it.  
  
“You know what _I_ missed the most about Corona?” Lance asked. “The people!” He gestured around them, then faltered. “In fact…I’m _still_ missing the people.”  
  
Come to think of it…he was right. At this time of day, they should be seeing a bustling city, kids going in and out of Monty’s shoppe. Heck, looking into the shop she didn’t see _any_ sign of the man, or evidence that his shop was even _in use._  
  
“Yeah, that’s weird.” Rapunzel said, then put her hands around her mouth. “Hello? Hello?” She got only her echoes in reply, which was…unnerving.  
  
“It’s kind of spooky.” Lance said nervously.  
  
“Hello? People?” Eugene called.  
  
“Is anyone here?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
Ulf was glancing around anxiously, putting up his hands. Lance copied his motion, moving closer to Rapunzel.  
  
They heard the sound of glass crashing to the ground and turned to see Feldspar bent over scrambling to gather up some green things on the ground.  
  
“Ohh! Oh dear, oh dear. Woe is me! I’ll never make my quota!” He whimpered fearfully as Rapunzel ran to his side.  
  
“Feldspar!” Rapunzel started to help him gather them up and he looked up at her with teary eyes before he seemed to recognize her.   
  
“Princess!” He sat back, looking at her like he was unsure if he was dreaming or not. “Oh, thank goodness you’re back!” He pushed the bucket towards her and she put the green things inside of it.  
  
“Where _is_ everyone?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Oh, It’s awful, it’s just _awful_!” Feldspar cried. “Everyone in Corona has been forced to quarry, mining these pesky, green minerals!” He cupped them in the palm of his hands, then put them back in the bucket. “Oh, oh, I gotta get this in by _nightfall_!” He finished gathering them up and put them all in the bucket.  
  
“Did you _know_ about this?” Rapunzel asked, looking at Ulf.  
  
Ulf nodded, then pointed to Shorty. Shorty shrugged. “What? I thought his story dragged, so I took the artistic license to make some judicious cuts.” He mimed cutting with scissors and then crossed his arms over his chest. “I _stand_ by that choice.”  
  
“I don’t believe it.” Rapunzel said firmly. “I’m going to the castle to speak with my father.”  
  
“I’m not sure what good _that_ will do.” Feldspar said as he got up with his bucket. “Your _father_ is the one who _gave_ the order.”  
  
“What?” Rapunzel breathed, then turned towards the castle.  
  
\--  
  
“She’s heeeere.” Juniper said, walking up to Andrew and Varian.  
  
“Good.” Andrew grinned. “Let’s make sure she has a nice, warm welcome.”  
  
Varian pulled his scarf up over his face and his goggles over his eyes and then gave a thumbs-up as they went to go lie in wait for Princess Rapunzel and her motley crew.  
  
\--  
  
Her father had ordered this? Her _father_ was responsible? But what about the invaders? What _else_ did Shorty not translate? Who, exactly, had invaded? And why was her father _doing_ this? She walked into the castle, past the startled guards and staff, and stormed up to the throne room, where she threw open the door and walked inside.  
  
She found her father and mother sitting on their thrones, as they should be. As she saw them, her anger evaporated, and she ran towards them. “Mom! Dad!” She cried with happiness. “Oh, you guys!” She hugged her mother tightly, earning an “Oh!” in response. “I have missed you _so_ _much_!”  
  
“Uhh, Frederic?” Her mother said, sounding a bit unsure of what to do.  
  
“Dad!” Rapunzel hugged him tightly.  
  
“Young lady, please!” King Frederic said awkwardly.  
  
“…’Young lady’?” She drew back, looking at him with confusion. “Dad, what’s going on?”  
  
“Ohh… _this_ is awkward.” Lance said, rubbing the back of his neck.  
  
Rapunzel’s gaze traveled down by chance and her eyes widened. On her father’s chest, where the Sun of Corona should be… “That…medallion, it’s—it’s—”  
  
“Saporian.”  
  
That voice. She _knew_ that voice. She hadn’t heard it in so long, over a _year_ , but she _knew_ it. He was standing in the doorway, looking relaxed, like he _belonged_ here. “Hey, Raps.” He greeted, and Rapunzel tried not to think about how it _stung_ to hear that nickname be used by someone again. “Nice to see you again.” He pushed the door open wider and several people Rapunzel didn’t recognize came in with him.  
  
“I’m gonna be completely honest,” Eugene said, drawing attention to himself, “like, I remember you, but I _don’t_ remember you. Does that make sense?”  
  
Andrew laughed. “Nice to see you’re still the same way you’ve _always_ been, Eugene. It’s Andrew, from Saporia. You broke my hot-air balloon.”  
  
“Oh, wait, less-attractive-than-me guy with the man-bun! Yes, I remember you now!” Eugene said irritably.  
  
“Yeah, hard to forget the guy your girlfriend spent a ‘double-date’ ogling over, isn’t it?” Andrew smirked at her and Rapunzel rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. “I’ve taken over Corona. Or, as we now refer to it, New Saporia!”  
  
“Long Live New Saporia!” The people with him declared.  
  
“I’m sorry, what? You, man-bun guy, and your flower children took over Corona? Hehe, this is only gonna take a minute—” Eugene was abruptly cut off by something being thrown at him from the shadows before he was engulfed in a horribly-familiar pink smoke.   
  
“Eugene!” Rapunzel ran over to him.  
  
When the smoke cleared, Eugene’s feet were encased in pink goo. “What the goop?” He struggled to move his legs, but they wouldn’t budge.  
  
Andrew chuckled. “Oh, we didn’t do this alone. You might recognize my former cell-mate.” He pointed to the shadows beyond the still-fading pink smoke, where a familiar figure stepped out into view. Rapunzel gasped in horror as Varian pulled up his goggles, the scarf covering his freckled face falling to reveal him.  
  
“Welcome home, Rapunzel.” He said with a sly glint in his eyes.  
  
“Varian…” Rapunzel breathed.  
  
“Oh, I see you’ve already _met_ my _new_ friends.” He walked over to stand next to Andrew and crossed his arms over his chest.  
  
“Ah, Varian!” King Frederic said cheerfully. “My most trusted advisor.”  
  
“Your Majesty, are these people bothering you?” Varian asked in a friendly way.  
  
“Well, I don’t actually _know_.” King Frederic replied.  
  
“What?” Rapunzel looked over at him, then back at Varian. “What did you _do_ to my _parents_?!”  
  
“What’s the matter, Rapunzel? I thought you _liked_ your father light-hearted, cheerful, and carefree.” Varian said mockingly. “After all, you were so _eager_ to stay with the one in your fantasy land.”  
  
“What is he talking about?” Eugene asked as he attempted to cut himself free from the goo.  
  
“ _What_ did you _do_?!” Rapunzel demanded, ignoring Eugene.  
  
Varian laughed. “ _I_ didn’t do _anything_. As you know, _I_ am a man of _science_. Clementine here offered a bit of…well, _she_ took care of it.” He gestured to the short woman next to him that was holding—

  
“That’s a Saporian Wand of Oblivium!” Rapunzel’s eyes widened in realization. “You’ve erased their memories!”  
  
“Yes, and I intend to do the same to everyone in Corona. After all, I can’t really live in peace without any fear of being stoned in the street or killed in my sleep as long as they remember my criminal record.” Varian said casually.  
  
“How long have you been doing this?” She stepped towards him. “ _When_ did you start this?!”  
  
He chuckled and walked towards her, leaning in close when he was in front of her. “ _Right_ after we _woke up_.”  
  
She gasped, stepping back. “You— _You_ said you were still in _prison_!”  
  
“Hey, _you_ didn’t tell me about The House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow, so we’re even.” Varian shrugged. “I had to find out when he came here wanting _revenge_. We got rid of him _and_ his house – for _good_.”  
  
“Get away from her!” Eugene struggled in the goo.  
  
“Yeah, you’re not getting out of that for a while.” Varian said, laughing a bit when Eugene struggled so much he fell on his butt with a yelp. “It’s meant to hold for thirteen hours, until I dissolve it.”  
  
“Varian, please, don’t _do_ this!” Rapunzel took his wrist in her hand.  
  
He looked at her hand, then smirked and shifted their hold, so he was holding her hand instead. “Nice of you to come home, Rapunzel. Was starting to get _lonely_ waiting for you.” He moved his hand from hers and then walked past her, trailing his fingers in her hair as he did.  
  
“Varian…” She turned to him. “ _This_ has to _stop_ , _now_!”  
  
“Aww, you _really_ think I’m going to just turn a new leaf, all because we shared a twisted dream-world together?” He turned to her with a smirk as the Saporians laughed.  
  
Lance ran at Varian and he grabbed another goo bomb, tossing it at the man and pinning him to the floor. Then Maximus came running and he dodged around him before going back to Andrew’s side.   
  
“Varian, if you _don’t_ stop this, I will _make_ you stop!” Rapunzel said aggressively.  
  
“And how do you intend to do _that_ , Princess?” He taunted.  
  
She reached up and untied her braid, letting down her hair. “By _fighting_ you.”  
  
“Oh, this will be _hilarious_.” Andrew chuckled. “Okay, Princess Sundrop. Let’s dance.”  
  
“Rapunzel!” Eugene cried, trying to pull free of the goo.  
  
The other Saporians prepared to fight, surrounding Rapunzel, Maximus and Ulf. The King and Queen watched the battle anxiously, and it hurt Rapunzel that they were worried for _Varian_ , not _her_.   
  
How could he _do_ this to her?  
  
She grabbed her hair and swung it out to strike at Varian. He dodged around her and threw a goo bomb at her hair when she swung it again, trapping it to the floor. She struggled to pull it free and Varian walked up to her with a smirk.  
  
The other Saporians were quickly overpowering the others, but her attention was only on Varian. She was completely helpless, overpowered, just like that fateful night. He had her at his mercy and they both knew it, but she refused to accept it.  
  
“Do you want to know what I’m working on?” He asked, taunting her in her helplessness as she struggled to pull her hair free of the goo.  
  
Pascal suddenly appeared on Varian’s shoulder and licked his ear. He yelped and jerked a bit, then caught Pascal before he hit the floor after being knocked off. “You, Pascal, are a nuisance.” He said, glaring at him in his hand.  
  
“D-Don’t hurt him!” Rapunzel cried.  
  
“I actually couldn’t even if I _wanted_ to, these people have a _thing_ about not wanting animals hurt.” Varian admitted, shoving Pascal in his pocket and looked over as Andrew pulled his hairband loose and tossed it at Maximus and Fidella to stop them with goo. “Looks like we’re about done here.” He said casually, holding Pascal in his pocket so he didn’t try to escape.   
  
“Varian…” Rapunzel clenched her fists. “You…”  
  
He looked at her just as she swung her fist and he caught it in a tight grip. “Phew, that might’ve hurt!” He said cheerfully. “Face it, Rapunzel. You’ve lost. Surrender.”  
  
Rapunzel tried to pull free of his grip, then let out a frustrated cry, dropping to her knees as he still held her hand in his grip.  
  
“You and I should talk.” He said casually. “We have a _lot_ to talk about, after all. _So_ many unanswered questions.”  
  
“Varian!” Eugene said angrily.   
  
Varian glanced over and then he quickly let go of Rapunzel’s hand and jumped back to avoid a sword being thrown at him. It landed blade-first in the floor and Varian looked at it before looking towards Eugene.  
  
“Guards!” He called, and the guards came into the room, guards that Rapunzel didn’t recognize wearing armor with the Saporian symbol on their armor. “Take everyone but this woman here to the dungeon. Feel free to be as rough as you like with _this_ one in particular; he just threw a sword at me.”  
  
“Hey!” Eugene yelped as he was hauled up and cuffed, along with everyone else.   
  
Ulf was cuffed and hauled over to Varian, who looked at the mime with a cold smile. “You can say hello to your accomplices in the mines. Take him away.” He nodded firmly and Ulf was hauled off.  
  
“Varian, how could you _do_ this?” Rapunzel asked, looked distressed.  
  
Varian walked over and removed the goo from her hair, then gathered it up as he walked back over to her. “We’ll discuss it later, Rapunzel. Play along and your _friends_ won’t be _hurt_. Got it?”  
  
“I thought you changed. You helped me in that strange world, you…” She brought her hands together. “I thought you’d _changed_.”  
  
He reached up and wiped at her cheek with his gloved hand. “Come on.” He took her hand and led her along, and she could only obey with her friends at stake. Pascal escaped his pocket and climbed up onto Rapunzel’s shoulder, looking at her anxiously.  
  
“Rapunzel!” Eugene called.  
  
Rapunzel stopped short. “Eugene…”  
  
“Behave and he’ll be fine.” Varian said, pulling her along again. “You can’t help him by being difficult.”  
  
She clenched her fists and jerked her hand away from his. “I’m not going _anywhere_ unless I _know_ they won’t be harmed!”  
  
He turned to her, then sighed. “Fine. Stay.” He walked over to the guards and Saporians and spoke to them. They nodded and then they seemed to be handling Eugene and the others a bit more gently and then Varian went back over to her. “They’re going to be locked up in guarded guest rooms and cuffed to the beds. Happy? If they receive any harm, it will be by their own doing.”  
  
She pursed her lips. “Why are you _doing_ this?”  
  
“Because I’m tired of being the one being controlled by people. For once, _I’m_ the one pulling the strings.” He turned to her. “And it feels _great_.”  
  
“Varian…please, can’t we _talk_ about this?” Rapunzel pleaded.  
  
“But, that’s what we’re going to _do_ , Rapunzel. Talk.” He took her hand again and pulled her along. “ _Alone._ ”  
  
Rapunzel sighed and glanced back at Eugene before she looked forward.  
  
Being led along by Varian like this, his hand in hers, made her think of the dream again and she hoped he didn’t notice her flustered blushing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for some time alone with the Princess.


	6. 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian and Rapunzel have a talk, with some...developments.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Varian took her to a dimly-lit lab and then locked the door before taking her over to a wall and locking a cuff around her ankle. “There. Now you won’t be running off or attacking me as soon as my back is turned.” He grabbed Pascal from his pocket and carried him over to a little cage, ignoring his protests, and locking him in.  
  
“Right.” He turned to her with a grin. “ _Now_ we can talk. There’s a stool if you need to sit.”  
  
She looked to the side but didn’t sit down. He shrugged and walked over to his lab table, pulling his goggles down and his scarf up to start checking the mixture. “Varian, you said we came here to _talk_.”  
  
“We did, but I’m also checking on my Quirineon.” Varian said as he worked. “You can _wait_ a bit, Rapunzel. _I_ certainly waited for _you_ long enough.”  
  
She winced. “Okay…I deserved that.”  
  
He did something with it, then pulled up his goggles and lowered his scarf as he walked over to her. “So,” He leaned against the table, “it’s been a little while.”  
  
“Varian, please, you _have_ to _stop_ this.” Rapunzel insisted.  
  
“I don’t have to do _anything_ , Princess.” He smirked and she tried not to think about how it made her heart skip a beat.  
  
With him in front of her, face to face with no other distractions, she was really noticing that he’d grown up. He was no longer the clumsy kid she knew, who fell asleep after doing too much laundry and built inventions that rarely worked. He was no longer the sweet boy that she’d befriended in his lab, who bowed to her and called her “Your Highness” and wanted to impress her.  
  
“Why would I stop all this when I have _everything_ I ever _wanted_?” He threw his hand out and stepped away from the table with a swish of his coat. “I spent _months_ in prison, being harassed by the guards, mocked by the King, and mistreated. And even _before_ my loss, everyone _hated_ me, and _attacked_ me; threw _stones_ at me, and _beat_ me.” He picked up an alchemy ball on the table. “It’s still incomplete, but I’m synthesizing the wand’s power into a gas that will erase the memories of _everyone_ in Corona! I’m calling it Quirineon, after my father, as a reminder to me why I’m doing this. Why I did _everything_.”  
  
She hadn’t noticed when they were in the strange world, but he’d really filled out. In his ill-fitting apron and clothes, his body was mostly concealed. In _this_ outfit, though? His current outfit was tighter, and his coat was long and framed his body nicely. His clothes were nicer, and everything about him was just…wow.  
  
‘When did Varian become…attractive?’ She thought, watching as he continued his monologue. ‘I don’t think _Andrew_ is the only one Eugene has to worry about anymore.’  
  
“Right now, I’m keeping the people of Corona controlled with threats and the orders of the King but, once my Quirineon is complete, _no one_ will remember my criminal record, or _anything_ about me aside from my being the King’s trusted advisor.” He smiled bitterly. “I can start my life over with a clean slate.”  
  
He turned to her, brushing his bangs out of his face, out of his eyes, and she found herself looking into them as if transfixed. Had they always been so…bright a blue? Her mind flashed back to the dream, to their bodies pressed together through thin robes.  
  
“And, since you’re _here_ , you can be included in that. And then, once you’ve forgotten everything, we can become _friends_ again, learn to _trust_ again.” Varian went on, then paused. “Rapunzel, are you even paying attention to what I’m saying? What’s that expression for?”  
  
“Huh? Oh, uh…” She glanced away, flustered that she was caught ogling him. How could she _not_ , though, he looked so _good_ , and then there were all the _dreams_ and—her thoughts were cut off by Varian placing his hand against the wall next to her head.  
  
“Rapunzel, please, pay attention.” He said flatly.  
  
Oh, she _was_. Just…not the way he apparently wanted. They were inches apart again, and she floundered for something to ruin the moment. She reached up to poke his nose and he drew back, his cheeks an adorable pink. Oh. That might’ve made things worse.  
  
“Uhm…right. Uhm…memory—wiped. Very bad. You shouldn’t do it.” She said, glancing away.  
  
He raised an eyebrow, then chuckled a bit before moving closer again, leaning in so his lips were brushing her ear as he whispered, “Am I making you _uncomfortable_?”  
  
She pushed him back, her face practically on fire with how red it must be. “Varian!”  
  
He laughed and leaned against the table. “You seem to be having a _very_ interesting reaction to me, Rapunzel. Care to elaborate?” He hummed.  
  
Uh, noooo, no, she wasn’t going to—she gasped as he grabbed her hand and pulled her close, the chains making a racket as she was pulled away from the wall. “I think I know what it is.” He said, moving his other hand to hers, clasping them together. “We’ve been sharing dreams again, after all.”  
  
She looked away, blushing. “Uhh…”  
  
“Have you told Eugene?” Varian asked, amused.  
  
“No!” She shook her head, then looked at him. “Okay, time for answers.”  
  
He smirked. “Okay, you ask first.”  
  
She pursed her lips. “…So, you _lied_ to me when you said you were in prison?”  
  
“Yes.” He nodded. “Already told you that earlier.”  
  
“And the—what are you doing?” She looked down as Varian moved a hand from one of her hands to rest on her hip, swaying them slowly.  
  
“It’s dancing. Go on.” He nodded.  
  
“The dream. We never figured out why we were connected. But, in the dream, your hair…glows.” She pursed her lips. “Does it…do that in real life?”  
  
“Only if I use my powers.” He shrugged. “I generally need some magic to boost me, I’m still figuring it out.”  
  
“Right, yeah. So, you have powers.” She frowned. “ _Why_ do you have powers?”  
  
“You know, I’ll ask my dad when I figure out how to free him.” Varian paused and looked at his hands, letting go of her and stepping back. He took off his gloves and flexed his fingers. “…I wonder…if I can melt the amber with it.”  
  
“With what?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Decay magic. I used it for self-preservation when Matthews tried to suck my life away and ended up destroying him, instead.” Varian explained.  
  
“Decay magic…” She moved her hand to her hair. “I…I know it. I know the incantation. But, how do you use it without the incantation?”  
  
He tilted his head, and Rapunzel tried not to think of how adorable he looked when he did that. “Incantation? I just…will it.”  
  
“Okay…” She frowned. “Can I ask another question?”  
  
“Sure.” He nodded.  
  
“Were you…in my head a couple days ago?” She asked.  
  
He chuckled. “What?”  
  
“Sorry. Stupid question.” She shook her head.  
  
He reached up and poked her nose. “If you mean, ‘did you spy on me through my own eyes and then use your powers to save me from ghosts’, yes, and you’re welcome.” He grinned and walked back over to his worktable.  
  
She looked around. “I don’t see your raccoon around.”  
  
He tensed. “…Ruddiger left shortly after the takeover. Guess that was the last straw for him.”  
  
“Oh.” Rapunzel nodded. “I’m sorry.”  
  
“Meh.” He shrugged. “He’s around, he’ll come back when he’s ready.”  
  
She sighed. “So…if you saw through my eyes, you know about…Cass.”  
  
“Yeah, and I’m gonna be having a bit of a talk with her about _stealing_.” Varian said, setting down what he was working on.  
  
“Varian, please, you _have_ to reconsider all… _this_.” Rapunzel gestured to the Quirineon.  
  
He sighed and walked back over to her, cupping her chin in his hand. “I said it before, and I’ll say it again. _I_ don’t have to do _anything_. _I’m_ in _control_ , the Saporians and I _rule_ this place. The only reason we have the King and Queen on the throne is because the Seven Kingdoms would react aggressively if they found out that Corona had changed rulers.” He released her chin and stepped back from her. “It’s in your best interest to just cooperate. And, don’t worry about Cassandra.” He clenched his fist and focused, his hair starting to glow. “ _I’ll_ be taking care of _her_.”  
  
“Varian…” Rapunzel walked closer to him and wrapped her arms around him. “Let’s…let’s talk about something else. Okay?” She suggested. “I won’t fight you…I…I know when I’m beat.”  
  
She hoped and prayed he wouldn’t detect the lie in her words. She wasn’t giving up, no way, too much was at stake. To just lie down and accept what he was planning? How could she just _accept_ it?  
  
He stared at her silently, seeming to be studying her. She reached up and ran her hands through his glowing hair, marveling at how it drifted between her fingers. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer.  
  
“You think, after _everything_ , I can’t tell when you’re being _dishonest_?” He murmured. “If you want to claim that you’re really giving up, then _prove_ it.”  
  
Frankly, she was finding it hard to focus right now. A dream was one thing, but his hands around her waist felt really nice for some reason and she couldn’t place it and what was she _doing_ , she had _Eugene_ , but Varian was really attractive and those eyes were just…so intense…  
  
He wanted her to prove she’d given up. How do you prove _that_? She moved her hands from his hair to his face, staring into his blue eyes, those same eyes that looked at her so tenderly in the dream, that had looked at her with such hate, that had pleaded with her with unshed tears during a blizzard. How could one boy’s eyes convey so many different emotions?  
  
“Rapunzel?” He asked, and she recalled his voice saying her name in a similar way, his hands tightly gripping her arms, at the start of a strange and wild dream and a battle to escape a dream world. The first time they realized their shared dreams were more than just…dreams. But, it was softer now, gentler. His hold on her waist tightened slightly. “Rapuuunzel?” He prompted.  
  
“I’m…thinking.” She said, resting her hands on his cheeks.  
  
“If you pinch my cheeks, I won’t be happy.” He warned her. “I get enough of that from Juniper.”  
  
“Who’s Juniper?” She asked.  
  
“Andrew’s sister. She’s the woman with the dark skin and long hair.” He reminded her.  
  
Right, Rapunzel had seen her among the group with Andrew. “You two seem…close. You and Andrew, I mean.”  
  
“He’s like the brother I’ve never had. The brother I… _kind_ of hoped _Eugene_ would be.” Varian glanced away. “Of course, I should’ve _given up on that_ when he called me ‘that kid who almost killed us’ at the Science Expo. _Stars_ , I was naive.”  
  
Rapunzel sighed. “Varian…I’m _sorry_ …”  
  
“It’s too late for apologies.” He started to pull away. “I’m wiping the slate clean.”  
  
She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him closer, acting before thinking clearly as she pressed her lips to his, finally closing that gap that had teased her so much. His eyes widened and then his expression softened before he held her closer again, his hands resting on her back as he returned the kiss.  
  
They heard a knock at the door and Varian broke the kiss, his hair going dark, and went to answer it. “Andrew.” He said as he unlocked and opened it.  
  
“Hey, kid.” Andrew rubbed his head. “Things okay in here? King Frederic was asking about you, wanted to make sure you were alright.”  
  
“I-I’m fine.” Varian said, glancing away.  
  
Andrew raised an eyebrow, then reached up and brushed some lipstick from Varian’s lips. “Ah. I see.” He smirked. “Okay, then. I’ll let him know you’re ‘busy’.” He winked and walked out.  
  
“Andrew, no, don’t say _anything_!” Varian wiped at his mouth and followed him out, shutting the door behind him.  
  
Rapunzel looked at them going, then looked at her chained ankle before shrugging at Pascal, who was still in his cage.  
  
\--  
  
Varian wasn’t sure why Rapunzel did that. Nor was he sure why he’d _let_ her. He blamed the dreams. Still, he didn’t let it affect him as he stood at King Frederic’s side for audiences, his hands clasped behind his back as he listened to a town-person’s woes. Or rather, their excuses for not meeting their quota.  
  
“My child, you see, she was very sick and I couldn’t go to the mines!” She cried. “Please, have mercy!”  
  
Varian sighed. “It’s a valid reason. You’re excused for this week and the next. Attend to your child.” He nodded to King Frederic, who smiled.  
  
“Do let us know if you are in need of anything.” King Frederic said, and the woman bowed and thanked them profusely for their benevolence before she left.  
  
Varian breathed a sigh of relief, glad it was over for the day. “Your Majesty,” he turned to the King, “I would like to make use of that tower bedroom and confine Rapunzel in there.”  
  
“Rapunzel? Oh, yes, the…girl that hugged us, correct? That called us her parents?” King Frederic asked, then paused. “… _Are_ we her parents?”  
  
Varian sighed and leaned his arm on the King’s shoulder affectionately. “I didn’t want to overwhelm you, especially since she had disappeared and we weren’t sure of when or _if_ she would be returning but, yes. Rapunzel is your daughter. She doesn’t know about your accident yet, I…still need to tell her. She’s being a bit irrational.”  
  
“I have a _daughter_.” Queen Arianna breathed. “Then, does that mean that we…that we’ve…” Her face went pink and she and King Frederic looked at each other with identically-pink faces. “Oh my.”  
  
“I will inform her of your situation.” Varian assured them. “And then, after she has had it properly explained, I will introduce you. Until then, I want to confine her to her tower bedroom, where she will not do you any harm.”  
  
“You’re so considerate. Thank you, Varian.” Queen Arianna smiled, then looked at Frederic again. “We have a _daughter_.”  
  
“We’ve gone _that far_ in our relationship.” He breathed.  
  
“Well, we…we _are_ married. It seems only…logical.” Queen Arianna said, nodding. “Still…a _daughter_. Oh, she must be _heartbroken_ that we’ve forgotten her!”  
  
“I’ll take care of her.” Varian assured them. “With any luck, she will join you for breakfast tomorrow and will be less…well, distressed.”  
  
“I leave her in your capable hands, Varian.” King Frederic said with a trusting smile.  
  
\--  
  
Rapunzel looked up as the lab door opened and Varian stepped back inside. “Varian.” She stood up from her stool. “I was starting to think you’d just left me down here forever.”  
  
“I had to attend to my Royal Advisor duties.” He shrugged. “And don’t be dramatic.” He walked over and unlocked the chain, then went to pick up Pascal’s cage. “I’m moving you to your room, you’ll stay there until I know you’re ready to play along.” He nodded to the door and offered her a hand. “Come on.”  
  
She sighed and took his hand. “Varian, uh, we need to _talk_ about _what happened_ just before you left.”  
  
“We’ll get to that later.” He pulled her along and they left the lab, heading through the castle. Rapunzel looked to the side as they passed Cassandra’s bedroom and winced a bit. He glanced at her but didn’t comment on it.  
  
They reached her tower bedroom and Varian opened the door. “I’m posting guards outside your room, so you don’t run off and try to play ‘hero’. Don’t forget that how well Eugene and the others get treated is entirely reliant on how well you cooperate.” He said, leading her inside.  
  
She looked around her bedroom, looking as if she didn’t recognize it. Varian didn’t know _why_ , no one had _been_ in here since she left aside from a maid. Then again, she had been on the road so long, she was probably still adjusting to being home. He closed the door and watched as she walked towards the balcony. “If you try to leave via your balcony, I’ll put bars on it.” Varian warned her.  
  
She walked over to the railing and sat on it with a sigh, her shoulders slumped. He frowned and walked over to sit with her. “Rapunzel?”  
  
“I…I wish I had known that she was…that she felt overshadowed all that time, that she…I never knew Mother—Gothel _had_ another daughter.” She said, sounding on the verge of tears.  
  
“Neither did I.” Varian shrugged. “Kind of a shock. You think you know a woman.”  
  
“Wait.” Rapunzel looked at him. “You _knew_ her?”  
  
“She would stay in the manor with us when she was in town.” Varian shrugged again. “I thought I knew her pretty well, but it seems she hid the fact she was a kidnapper _really well_. And now I’m finding out she’s a _mom_? Yeesh, Miss Gothel.”  
  
“You… _did_ seem to _know_ her, when we saw her in that…that strange dream-world.” Rapunzel nodded.  
  
He sighed. “Speaking of parents, I told the King and Queen you were their daughter. I also assured them that I would inform you of their situation.”  
  
“’Their situation’?” She raised an eyebrow.  
  
“As far as they know, they were found by the Saporians after their boat was attacked by a sea monster and were brought home with no memory. They’re still working on remembering things, including their relationship.” Varian explained. “Queen Arianna and King Frederic were rather shocked to find out they had a daughter, especially since they haven’t been intimate since their ‘accident’ and thought that they hadn’t gotten that far. I’m still helping them rebuild their relationship.” He chuckled a bit. “An unexpected side-effect, since they were only supposed to forget about what _I_ did. I guess Clementine used too much magic.”  
  
“That’s…wow.” Rapunzel frowned. “Speaking of…’intimate’…”  
  
“You want to discuss the kiss.” He guessed.  
  
She nodded. “I don’t know, it kind of felt…right? Like, there were all these hints in the dreams and then you were kind of flirting and being intimidating and you’ve grown up really…uh… _attractive_ and it just kind of…I just… _did_ it.”  
  
“It caught me by surprise.” He admitted. “But…it was also kind of nice. But, hey, don’t you have a _boyfriend_?”  
  
“I _know_!” She held her head. “And I feel _terrible_ but at the same time I want to do it again and I don’t know what I’m _thinking_ anymore!”  
  
She looked up at him. “It’s those _dreams_ , they…ugh! The dancing and the pressing together and the lips nearly touching and then there’s your flirty looks and I don’t know if you _mean_ to flirt or not but you are being _very_ flirty and it’s hard to focus on _anything_ but the fact that I _really_ want to kiss you again!”  
  
He raised an eyebrow and leaned in close. “Do you really?”  
  
She nodded, looking nervous.  
  
“Even though I have taken over your kingdom and have your boyfriend’s life in my hands, you want to _kiss_ me?” He asked, as if he was trying to figure her out.  
  
Rapunzel reached up and grabbed his coat, pulling him closer to kiss him again, her eyes squeezed shut. He blinked in confusion and then shrugged before closing his eyes, one of his hands moving up to gently cup her head as he kissed back.  
  
They held it for a bit, and then he slowly broke it with a chuckle. “You are _so_ confusing, Princess.” He stroked her cheek and then got up, walking into the room. “I have work to do, so I’ll see you later. Remember to behave and, if you stick to the script, I’ll bring you down for dinner with your parents.” He walked to the door and paused. “I’ll send Faith in to be your Lady-in-Waiting.”  
  
“Faith?” Rapunzel looked at him, confused.  
  
“The youngest maid.” Varian clarified. “She’s my friend.” He smiled and walked out, closing the door behind him.  
  
Once it was closed and locked, he reached up to wipe at his mouth, his cheeks red. This was…complicating. Yes, he was aware of how the dreams were…making him feel, but this was…having her kiss him, willingly, not just once but _twice_ …it was something he was really going to have to think about.  
  
And he kind of wanted it again. And wouldn’t it be so great if he actually _did_ manage to take her from Eugene? He took the Kingdom, took her parents, she’d be the last piece on the board for him to take.  
  
And it looked like she was feeling pretty eager to be taken.  
  
There was one more player he needed to worry about, though. Cassandra. Who, apparently, wanted to get revenge against Rapunzel for Gothel stealing her away as a baby, which is the _most pathetic_ motivation to be a villain he had _ever_ heard.  
  
He sighed and walked away from the door, guards moving to block it as he left. He walked through the hall and downstairs, heading back to his lab. He had to complete the Quirineon. Then…if it worked, he’d use it on everyone…including his father.  
  
But, what if he didn’t _have_ to?  
  
He paused and changed his course, heading for the stable. He found Andrew outside and approached him. “Andrew, I’m going to Old Corona.”  
  
“Alright.” Andrew nodded, and they headed for the stable together.  
  
Maximus grunted at him as he passed by where he and Fidella were chained up, but he ignored him. Then he paused and walked over to Maximus with a smile. “You want these chains off? Work with me. Let Andrew ride you; we’re going to Old Corona.”  
  
Maximus eyed him aggressively, but relented. The chains were removed and Fidella and Maximus were brought out. Andrew started to remove Maximus’ saddle, but Varian held out a hand.  
  
“He’s a very proud horse.” He told him. “It’s his uniform.”  
  
“Very well, I will accept that.” Andrew went to Maximus’ front and stroked his nose. “As much as it pains me to see you with these trappings, I will respect your wishes.”  
  
Maximus just turned his head indignantly. Andrew walked over and got on, Varian already on Fidella, and then they took off to Old Corona together.  
  
“No hard feelings about the goo, I trust? It was a humane way of stopping you.” Andrew said as they rode.  
  
“It’s why I _made_ the goo.” Varian said, chuckling a bit.  
  
“So, why are we going?” Andrew asked as they raced through the woods.  
  
“I’m going to try to melt the amber with my decay magic.” Varian said, smiling.  
  
“Alright, just be careful not to use it on _him_.” Andrew warned him.  
  
Varian nodded. “I know.”  
  
They pulled up outside the manor and Varian tensed a bit. What if it didn’t work? What if he just killed his father? No, he had to have faith it would work. “Uhm, Andrew? There’s a guitar in my bedroom…if you could play music while I do it, it might…help.”  
  
Andrew smiled. “Of course, Varian.”  
  
They went inside and retrieved the guitar, Andrew pausing to admire the grooming attachments on Varian’s headboard for a bit, and then went into the lab.  
  
“Alright…ready?” Andrew said, sitting down and propping the guitar on his knee.  
  
No. not really. But, he was ready as he would _ever_ be, so he took off his gloves and set them to the side. “Yeah.”  
  
Andrew smiled and then started to play the same song that Juniper always played for him. Varian let the tune wash over his mind and soothe him and then he walked towards the amber, focusing on his powers. His hair startled to glow with the tips of his fingers and eyes and he reached out to place his hands on the amber, closing his eyes.  
  
‘Please, work.’ He thought, tightly gripping a part of the amber that stuck out.  
  
He heard words in his head and let out a soft sigh as he gripped another part of the amber with his other hand as he softly sang them along with Andrew’s playing.  
  
“ _Wither and Decay.  
End this destiny.  
Break these earthly chains  
And set the spirit free.  
  
Take what has been hurt.  
Show them no mercy.  
Bend and break the reins  
And set the spirit free.  
The spirit free._”  
  
As he sang, he felt the amber melting under his grip and opened his glowing eyes to see the amber slowly but surely melting away as he kept holding on. When his father was finally free of it, he released the amber and stopped the decay spell, then threw his arms around his father tightly as Andrew finished the song and set aside the guitar.  
  
“Nngh…Varian?” Quirin said, looking up at him. “What…why are you…what are you _wearing_?”  
  
“Hey, dad.” Varian smiled at him. “Welcome back. It’s…been a year.”  
  
Andrew got up and walked over to pat his shoulder. “I’ll be outside with the horses. Take your time.”  
  
Varian nodded, smiling up at him. “We did it.”  
  
“I promised we would.” Andrew rubbed his head and then walked off.  
  
“Who…who was _that_?” Quirin asked with a frown, holding Varian closer to him protectively.  
  
Varian looked at Andrew as he closed the door to give them privacy. “Dad, I…I have a bit of a story to tell you.”  
  
“Does it explain why your hair is glowing blue?” Quirin asked.  
  
“Yeah, kind of.” Varian chuckled a bit. “You see…it all started with the blizzard…”  
  
Quirin sighed softly and nodded, sitting up properly as he listened to his son start his tale.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, now Rapunzel's gone and complicated things!  
> But, yay, Varian's got his dad back!


	7. 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After freeing his father, Varian is in much better spirits!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Things were…awkward, with Varian’s dad around. He was both wary of the Saporians but also grateful that they were there for his son when others had abandoned him to a life in a cold, dark prison cell, especially Andrew. He wasn’t too happy about his Moon powers being “unlocked”, but understood that it wasn’t exactly _their_ fault, and had sat Varian down to explain why he even _had_ those powers.  
  
Turns out, at the time of the Dark Kingdom’s fall, he’d been hit by a wave of energy from the Moonstone and had taken some of it into his body, which only manifested itself beyond constant pain in his marked hand when Varian was born with the streak in his hair. He’d tried to keep Varian from finding out, from his powers unlocking, but that had only led to…well, trouble.  
  
They’d walked back from Old Corona to the Capital, which he was rather shocked to find out Varian had assisted in taking over, but considering what the place _did_ to him, he also didn’t blame him. During that time, he’d gotten to know the man that Varian had come to see as a brother, _Prince_ Andrew of Saporia. Varian held his hand with his own gloved one as they walked, looking every bit like the child that he _should_ be, but also much too tall and adult-like at the same time as he walked alongside his father.  
  
Behind them, the Royal Guard horses followed quietly, neither of them looking too happy. Maximus tensed and then turned his head with a neigh at he looked at the trees beside them.  
  
“What’s the matter, Maximus?” Varian looked at him.  
  
Maximus moved to the trees and buried his head in the leaves. Varian heard a struggled of some kind and then Maximus was nudging Ruddiger out of the tree and onto the ground. Then they had some kind of back and forth discussion, with both of them gesturing to Varian several times.  
  
Whatever Maximus said, it must’ve worked. The raccoon didn’t leave, and instead eyed Andrew warily as he crawled over and looked up at Varian with wide, hopeful eyes.  
  
Varian cleared his throat. “Can you give us a bit?”  
  
Andrew nodded and patted Quirin’s shoulder. “Let’s give them some space.”  
  
Quirin nodded and walked away a bit with the younger man. Varian knelt down to talk to Ruddiger and Andrew sighed, leaning against a tree. “He thought you’d hate him.”  
  
“Hm?” Quirin looked at him.  
  
“Varian. He thought you’d _hate_ him for everything he did.” Andrew looked at him. “Curious…why _don’t_ you?”  
  
“Because he’s not to _blame_ for _any_ of it. The things he told me…if Frederic didn’t have his memories erased, I’d punch him. As far as I’m concerned, justice has been served.” Quirin pursed his lips. “I…I did not want him to know about it…I wanted to protect him from the moon, just a little longer. I meant to tell him when he came of age, I thought that if he knew about his powers _sooner_ that he would be…that they would be uncontrollable by his small body.”  
  
Andrew shifted his position a bit. “So, you’re _not_ upset about _anything_ he’s doing?”  
  
“Well, sending people to quarry the crystals is a bit…upsetting, but considering what they _did_ to him in his time of need?” He sighed heavily. “All his life, I’ve been trying to protect people from him…but I should have been protecting _him_ from _them_. I’ve been a terrible father…” He clenched his fist. “But, I’ll do better from now on. And if that means standing by my son while he, rather nicely, gets his revenge against the people that mistreated him in my absence, then so be it.”  
  
Andrew chuckled. “Well, he’ll be glad to hear that. I don’t think he wanted to use the Quirineon on you.”  
  
Quirin paused. “He named his memory-erasing alchemy after _me_?”  
  
“So he’d never forget why he did everything. All he did before, all he wants them to forget, was to try to get you back when no one else would help him.” Andrew stretched a bit. “Still, sending the Saporian Hunters out after him was too much, if you ask me.”  
  
“Maybe not.” Quirin pursed his lips. “His mother was Saporian.”  
  
“Really?” Andrew looked at him.  
  
Quirin nodded, smiling fondly. “My Ulla, she came to Corona to try to make a difference.”  
  
Andrew blinked. “His mother’s name was _Ulla_?”  
  
Quirin looked at him and nodded. “Did you know her?”  
  
Andrew chuckled. “I looked up to her. Feels good to know that I’ve been caring for her son all this time.”  
  
Quirin smiled fondly as he looked at Varian, who was still talking with the raccoon. “I think she would be grateful, if she were still here.”  
  
Ruddiger climbed into Varian’s arms and Varian held him close, stroking his fur as he buried his face in it.  
  
“Seems the ‘coon changed his mind.” Andrew remarked.  
  
Varian walked back over to them, Ruddiger draped over his shoulders. “Right. Let’s go back to the castle.”  
  
Andrew stepped away from the tree. “Lead on.”  
  
\--  
  
Rapunzel looked up from drawing in her journal to see Varian coming back with Andrew and…oh. He’d managed to free his father finally, it looked like. She closed her book and sighed, brushing her hair behind her ear as she watched them walk in, Varian looking happier than she’d seen him in a long, long time.   
  
Her fingers still kind of tingled from when he’d, apparently, taken over her body to help her fight the ghosts. And her lips were still tingling from the kiss they shared, which she… _really_ wasn’t sure about how she felt. A year ago, she would have _never_ thought about kissing Varian, though they came so _close_ to it one time, she…barely even _knew_ him beyond him being the overeager kid that went…well, insane. But after their Fantasy Land trip and then the dreams and then his new…well, his new clothes were really, _really_ attractive. Though she doubted the goatee was real, she respected his attempt to look older than he was. Maybe he was just trying to be like Flynn Rider, his childhood idol.  
  
Eugene…what would she _say_ to him, when she next saw him? She hoped he was alright, that Varian kept his word and he was only chained up. And Lance and Shorty and—and didn’t Ulf get dragged off somewhere? She had almost forgotten that Varian, despite appearances, was capable of cruelty. She sighed and clutched at her hair, recalling when he’d used her hair in his drill, when he’d casually said that Rapunzel may be shattered by the amber, instead of the other way around. And then…all the other things he’d done.  
  
She decided to get up from the railing and turn to her easel for her thinking. She walked over and picked up her brush and prepared paints and started to paint. She painted Varian, his old look and new look. She painted Cass, old and new looks. And she painted her father, her father that had been ripped from her, but Varian had been kind enough to tell them who she was _as long as she played along_. She was putting on the finishing touches when she heard the door be unlocked and then she set down the brush to turn to face her captor.  
  
Because that’s what Varian was. Sure, she wasn’t chained here, but he’d have her chained up if she tried to run. He had guards at her door, her friends’ lives threatened. She’d been so caught up in the dreams and the kiss and the _moment_ that she didn’t think about the fact that this…ugh, he’d said it himself, didn’t he? He had taken her Kingdom, her family, her friends, and she wanted to _kiss_ him? Yes, the first time she’d done it to try to distract him but been distracted herself as a result and he’d left her chained up. Then she kissed him again here and she had _no reason_ _to do that_.   
  
He stepped inside and closed the door behind him, looking satisfied with himself. Of course, he was. He had his father back. Now all he needed was that clean slate he was working towards.   
  
“How are you feeling?” He asked her.  
  
She brushed her hair behind her ear. “Cooperative.”  
  
“I meant in general.” He raised an eyebrow. “But, the fact that _that_ was the first thing you thought of tells me that you’re upset.”  
  
She walked over to him. “Of course, I’m upset, why _wouldn’t_ I be? I have had a _really_ bad past few days, and I come home to find out that you…that you’ve…” She clenched her fists, then sighed. “But, I know when I’m beat.”  
  
“Do you?” He hummed.  
  
“Yes, Varian. I concede. You’ve won.” She said, turning away from him.  
  
He walked up behind her and reached around her, taking her hands in his, and she was once against brought back to the dream. “It’s not so bad. A clean slate…it’s a good thing. You wouldn’t want your people to be consumed by hate, you’ve seen what it does.” He said gently. “If you’re cooperating, then I won’t use it on you. I think I can trust you to not attack me.” He turned her towards him. “Can’t I?”  
  
She swallowed nervously. They were so close, again, and she was looking into those blue eyes again. She started to pull away, but he pulled her back to him, gazing into her eyes with a soft smile. She didn’t know what he was thinking, but she was having trouble focusing and part of her didn’t want to do anything but kiss him again. Was he controlling her again? He wasn’t glowing, though. He wasn’t in her head, not actually, just…she tried to pull away again and, this time, he let her. Feeling conflicted, she walked over and sat on her bed, glancing up when he walked over to sit next to her.  
  
“I…saw you got your raccoon back.” She said, then glanced at Pascal’s cage. “Can you…let Pascal out?”  
  
He nodded and walked over to unlock it, letting him out. “Don’t cause any trouble, Pascal.” He said as the lizard blew a raspberry at him and went to sit in Rapunzel’s cupped palm. Then he walked over to sit next to her again. “Any other requests, Princess?”  
  
She looked up at him. “Can I…see Eugene?”  
  
“Mm…” Varian pursed his lips. “He, uh, punched Kai when he went to bring him lunch earlier, so…no. He’s not allowed visitation. On that note, did you get lunch today?”  
  
“Oh, yes, uhm…Faith brought it.” Rapunzel nodded.  
  
“Good.” He smiled. “I knew I could count on her to take care of you, even though I…” he blushed a bit, “forgot to tell her to.”  
  
She couldn’t help but giggle a bit at that. “You did?”  
  
“Yyyyeah. I was kind of…distracted.” He gave a vague gesture towards Old Corona.  
  
She nodded. “You have your dad back now. That’s great.”  
  
He reached up and stroked her cheek. “You still have your parents, Rapunzel. But without the lies and deceit. You can help them remember things, and you can leave whatever you want out. Such as the pain of losing you as a baby.”  
  
She looked at him. “…Right. They…don’t _remember_ that.”  
  
He nodded. “Do you _want_ them to?”  
  
She thought of her parents, grieving over losing her for eighteen years. She thought of her father, overprotective and sometimes cruel as a result. She decided that…it would be better if they _didn’t_ remember. “No.”  
  
He smiled and took her hand in his, earning a warning growl from Pascal. “Then, you don’t have to remind them.” He brought her hand to his lips and gently kissed it.  
  
She blushed and started to pull her hand away, but then moved it to his cheek instead as she leaned in, part of her questioning why she was doing this and the other part…wanting the feel of his lips on hers, instead of her hand.  
  
He closed the gap, wrapping his arm around her, and they kissed again. Pascal made some displeasured squeaks, but she ignored him, her other hand slipping into his hair as she considered how different it felt when it wasn’t glowing. He pressed closer and Pascal let out a squeak as he hopped off her lap to avoid being crushed when Varian thoughtlessly moved over her as he laid her down under him, still kissing.  
  
“Pardon me…”  
  
He opened his eyes and sat up, looking at the door with a flustered blush. “Faith.”  
  
“S-Sorry to interrupt, Varian, but it’s time for dinner. Is she coming down for it, or am I bringing it up here?” She asked, looking a bit flustered herself.  
  
“Uh, yeah, she’s…she’s coming down.” Varian climbed off the bed and adjusted his scarf a bit. Rapunzel slowly sat up, looking a bit winded.  
  
“A-Alright, then. I will make sure her seat is prepared.” She did a curtsey and then left, closing the door behind her.  
  
“…Oh, gosh, one of the maids saw.” Rapunzel breathed.  
  
“You can trust Faith, she keeps secrets.” Varian assured her. “Especially mine.”  
  
Rapunzel got up and went to look in the mirror before she sat down and started to clean off and reapply her lipstick. Varian wiped off the lipstick on his lips with his glove and then shrugged, like he wasn’t even bothered by being seen.  
  
Then again, he said she could _trust_ Faith…  
  
“Ready?” He asked, turning to her. “You remember the story, right?”  
  
She nodded. “Sea monster attack, found by Saporians, brought home. But, what about the whole…’New Saporia’ thing?”  
  
“It’s just what we’re calling the city. The Kingdom itself is still Corona, to avoid complications with the Seven Kingdoms, but until Saporia is rebuilt, the Saporians have moved in here. Some of them, at least. There’s still a lot that are waiting for the city to be rebuilt, but we have to clear land for that.” Varian shrugged. “That’s gonna take some time.”  
  
He offered her his hand. “Let’s go to dinner.”  
  
Rapunzel stood up and walked over to take his hand. “Okay.”  
  
He led her out of the room, and Pascal climbed up onto her shoulder as they went. Rapunzel noticed Ruddiger had sat waiting outside of the room but followed them as they went downstairs.  
  
“Rapunzel.” Her father greeted with a smile.  
  
“Dad.” She went to him and hugged him again, and this time he returned it. “Varian explained everything, I…I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to confuse you.”  
  
“Oh, Rapunzel, it’s alright. I’m just happy that you’re home again and I could meet you.” He gently stroked her hair soothingly.  
  
“Why don’t we get to know each other more after dinner?” Queen Arianna gently suggested. “Right now, we are keeping everyone waiting.”  
  
“Oh, don’t worry about us, Your Majesty.” Andrew assured her from where he sat next to Quirin. “After all, family is important.”  
  
“No, she’s…she’s right.” Rapunzel nodded and went to her chair, which Varian pulled out for her before going to his own chair. “We can talk more after dinner. Right?” She looked at Varian.  
  
“Of course.” Varian nodded with a smile.  
  
Faith came over to attend to Rapunzel as the meal began. Rapunzel looked at her thoughtfully. “If you’re my new Lady-in-Waiting, why aren’t you in the uniform?”  
  
“I only just started, and it was rather sudden. I’ll have it tomorrow, Your Highness.” Faith replied.  
  
“Oh, I understand.” Rapunzel nodded, then looked back at her food. “I was just curious.”  
  
Truthfully, she wasn’t sure what seeing Faith in that outfit would do to her. She’d grown to be so used to seeing Cassandra in it, that her being so easily _replaced_ was…  
  
She felt a tear slip down her cheek at the thought of Cassandra. Cassandra, who had betrayed her, _used_ her, in much the same way Varian had done a year ago. And now she was here with Varian, under his…care, his _rule_ , while Cassandra was running off who-knew-where with the Moonstone.  
  
The Moonstone, that, apparently, wasn’t ever meant for either of _them_ , but for Varian. She’d left him here and gone to steal his destiny. And he knew it, too, he was watching as she reached for it, giving her encouragement to keep going, helping her fight.   
  
Why?  
  
Did it even matter anymore? Cassandra had taken it and…and left her. Because of _Gothel_. For eighteen years, that woman ruined her life, controlled it, lied to her…and now she’d taken Cassandra from her.  
  
“Dearest?” He mother said, catching her attention. “Is everything alright?”  
  
She blinked, then wiped at her eyes. “I-I’m okay. I just…I had a very… _stressful_ trip, and it’s all crashing down on me right now.”  
  
“Oh, Rapunzel.” Her father said sympathetically.  
  
Faith placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and Rapunzel looked at her, seeing her giving her soft, reassuring smile.  
  
She had to wonder about this girl. She remembered everything, she knew of Varian and what he'd done and what he was _doing_ , but she still called him her friend and he trusted her to keep his secrets. Why was that?  
  
“I’m okay.” She told her softly, then looked back at her food to keep eating.   
  
She couldn’t help but notice that meat wasn’t on the menu and thought back to what Varian had said during the fight about them not wanting animals hurt and when she first met Andrew. When asked what he might want to eat, he’d asked for vegetables, mashed potatoes and a roll and they’d just had the same food as him.  
  
It looked like Varian was making sure that meat wasn’t on the menu, since he seemed to be the one calling the shots here, for the Saporians’ sake. It was…sweet, especially since he’d packed a ham sandwich to the science expo before and seemed to really enjoy them.  
  
She couldn’t really contribute in dinner conversations, having not been around and them not really knowing about where she’d been, but she did glance over when she heard the Saporians and Varian talking.  
  
“More and more miners have been planning to revolt, and the mime telling them the Princess is here is making things worse.” Juniper reported.  
  
“They think she’s here to save them.” Varian hummed. “Maybe we should show them otherwise.”  
  
“What do you suggest?” Andrew asked.  
  
“Rapunzel,” Varian looked over at her, “how would you like to come with me to the quarry tomorrow?” He asked with a pleasant smile.  
  
“Oh, uh…sure?” Rapunzel asked, suddenly feeling nervous.  
  
“Great.” He looked back at his conversation. “I’ll handle it, don’t worry.”  
  
“I leave it in your hands, then.” Andrew nodded. “We’re ready to start clearing the land over by the monument. Think you can build us some of those automatons to help with that?”  
  
“I’ll see what I can do.” Varian nodded. “They aren’t exactly made for deforesting, might have to make some modifications.”  
  
“If not, we’ll manage.” Andrew assured him. “You just focus on your stuff.”  
  
Varian nodded. “Sounds good.”  
  
“Hey, Varian, why don’t you tell Rapunzel about our trip to the House of Yesterday’s Tomorrow?” Clementine grinned.  
  
“Ahhh, no, I don’t think I will. I have had enough of Matthews to last me a lifetime.” Varian waved it off. “Besides, it would be disrespectful to the King and Queen to talk about it right now.”  
  
“Later, then.” Maisie smirked.  
  
“I feel like I’m missing a joke.” Rapunzel admitted.  
  
“Ugh, they just looove to tease me on how that stupid place _finally_ got me to admit magic was real and that _some_ things cannot be explained away by science.” Varian rolled his eyes. “You guys are a bunch of bullies.”  
  
They laughed and he chuckled a bit.  
  
Rapunzel sighed, missing her _own_ friends. She…wasn’t sure Varian counted as that anymore. Or if he even _really_ did, despite what had been said. She decided to distract herself with focusing on her food, no one was talking to her _anyway_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel is falling for the enemy and falling very fast.


	8. 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel gets to know her parents again, and learns more about Varian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

After dinner, most of the Saporians wandered off but Andrew and Juniper stayed with Varian, going with Rapunzel and her parents into her father’s study to talk.  
  
“I was…kind of hoping to talk with my parents alone.” Rapunzel said awkwardly.  
  
“They don’t fully know you yet, Rapunzel.” Varian said calmly. “Until then, they feel most comfortable with me.”  
  
“Oh, Lord Andrew, Lady Juniper, why don’t you play that lovely song you’ve been playing lately for Rapunzel?” Queen Arianna suggested.  
  
Juniper chuckled. “I’ll have to get our instruments.”  
  
“We’ll wait.” Andrew nodded.  
  
Juniper shrugged and walked out to get them. Varian sat next to Rapunzel, across from her parents, with ruddier resting on his lap as he stroked his fur. “Rapunzel, dear, why don’t you tell us where you’ve been?” Queen Arianna encouraged.  
  
Rapunzel looked at Varian who nodded. Rapunzel sighed. “It’s…a long story.” Leaving out the parts about Varian, she started to talk to them about following the rocks, the journey, the Moonstone, Cassandra and her eventual betrayal. During her story, Juniper came back and handed Andrew a guitar before she sat down with her lute and they both started to play. She cut herself off mid-sentence and turned to them. “Where did you hear that song?!”  
  
“It’s the Hymn of the Cosmos.” Andrew explained as they kept playing. “It’s supposed to boost the power of the Sun and the Moon, according to the True Seer.”  
  
“They played it for me while I was using my powers to help you fight the ghost from a distance.” Varian explained. “And when I freed my father from the amber.”  
  
“Where is he, anyway?” Rapunzel looked around.  
  
“He was tired, so he went to bed early.” Varian shrugged. “Why do you ask about this song, anyway?”  
  
“It’s…” she glanced at her parents, “I’ve just…heard it before, so I was wondering what it was. I dreamed about it, I guess.”  
  
She couldn’t tell them about Gothel. They couldn’t feel the grief again, she wouldn’t do that to them.  
  
“Well, it’s a lovely song.” Queen Arianna smiled.  
  
“Yes, I rather enjoy listening to it.” King Frederic agreed.  
  
It _was_ a beautiful tune, and Rapunzel wished that she could listen to it with the same…innocence. But, she knew this tune differently. It was a tune connected with healing, but also destruction. And memories of Gothel, from 18 years of captivity.  
  
Gothel, who Varian apparently knew from her staying at his home when she wasn’t in the tower with Rapunzel or on trips. Gothel, who Cassandra threw away their friendship for the _memory_ of.  
  
Rapunzel sighed and bowed her head, gripping her dress. “This has been…fun, but I think I need to rest.” She said softly. “Long trip.”  
  
“Oh, of course!” Queen Arianna smiled. “Why don’t you go on to bed, dear.”  
  
“I’ll escort you.” Varian said, getting up slowly enough Ruddiger could climb off.  
  
Rapunzel sighed and got up to walked over and hug and kiss both her parents on the cheeks before she walked out with Varian, leaving her parents with the Saporian siblings. She glanced back at the door as they left it and then glanced at Varian, who was closing the door behind them after Ruddiger came out behind him.  
  
“They’ll be fine.” He assured her. “It’s counterproductive to harm them in any way.” He took her hand and led her along. “You looked like you saw a ghost.” He remarked. “Something about that tune bug you?”  
  
“It’s…the tune for the incantations, remember? I sang it for you once, to try to heal you?” Rapunzel reminded him.  
  
“Ah, thought it sounded familiar.” He said thoughtfully.  
  
“Gothel, she…she raised me on that song. Every day she was with me, I would sing it for her. So, I’ve come to associate it with her. And then…then I used it to use the decay spell in the Great Tree before…” She wrapped her arms around herself. “I didn’t know it had a name.”  
  
“Most songs do.” He said as he led her down the stairs.  
  
“Why are we going to the quarry tomorrow?” She asked.  
  
“To squash their hopes of salvation delivered by their princess.” Varian replied.  
  
“But, isn’t that too cruel?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“If we don’t, they’ll keep trying to fight us. It’s not like we’re going to hurt them, Rapunzel. You’re just going to show them you’re _completely_ onboard with my ‘clean slate’ plan.” Varian assured her as they walked to the stairs leading to her tower.  
  
“And if I don’t?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Then you’ll be confined to your room and Eugene and the others will be thrown into High-Security, where Andrew and I spent most of the year. And, trust me, you _don’t_ want them in there.” He said coolly.  
  
“…I’ll cooperate.” She nodded.  
  
“Glad you understand the situation.” He led her to her room and the guards stepped aside so he could open the door and lead her in. Faith was already there, and she bowed politely before coming over to help Rapunzel get ready for bed. “I’ll be back to come get you for breakfast.” He turned to go.  
  
“Varian…” Rapunzel took his hand and he turned to her. “I…” She glanced away. “Nevermind. Goodnight.”  
  
He moved closer and brushed his lips against her cheek. “Good night, Princess.” He said, starting to pull away. Rapunzel moved forward and pressed her lips against his before pulling back and retreating to her bed. He blinked and then shrugged with a smile before he walked out.  
  
Rapunzel waited until he was gone before she brought her hands to her face. Why did she just do that? She could’ve just let him leave with a kiss on the cheek, why did she feel compelled to kiss him on the lips again? What was _wrong_ with her? How could she do this to _Eugene_?  
  
She laid down on the bed and sighed, then blushed a bit as she thought of the last time she was lying down on it like this. Pascal patted at her cheek, trying to get her attention, but all she could think of was the sight of Varian over her, so passionate but also flustered at being caught like that.   
  
“Your Highness?” Faith prompted.  
  
Rapunzel blinked, then slowly sat up. “S-Sorry. He’s a bit…uhm…I’m a bit…distracted.”  
  
“Hmm.” Faith walked over and started to undo Rapunzel’s braid. “He can be a bit intense at times, but he has a good heart.”  
  
“Why do _you_ support his plan?” Rapunzel asked, glancing back at her.  
  
“Because I saw how people treated him even before the false accusations.” She said with a sigh. “I first met him the day of the science expo. He was helping Miss Cassandra by doing her chores for her so she could be given a rare opportunity to do the job that she actually _wanted_ , to be in the Royal Guard with her father just for one day.”  
  
“I saw that.” Rapunzel nodded.  
  
“Well, I was curious about him, and when we met again in the woods after the expo, he revealed that she didn’t follow through on her part of the deal, to assist him with his presentation, and ‘it all went wrong’.” Faith sighed. “We sat and talked for a while, mostly about Miss Crowley, and his father. Then he started talking about his village, and how they…didn’t trust him. They mistreated him, and his father allowed it, always apologizing to them for what Varian did by accident and never to Varian for what they put him through. And then…”   
  
She glanced away. “Then there was the storm, and he had a wanted poster for supposedly attacking you. No one questioned it, no one thought that, maybe, there was more to the story. They just accepted he was dangerous and a menace because that’s what they had been calling him his whole life. And then he did terrible things after being terrorized for weeks and was thrown into prison, where…” she shuddered, “if Mr. Andrew had not been there with him, he would have been…”  
  
“Been…what?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Some things, Your Highness, are better left unsaid.” She finished letting down Rapunzel’s hair and went to get her nightgown. “He has frequent nightmares about it and relies on Mr. Andrew’s protection and guidance. His Majesty is, honestly, better like this than before. Losing you, your Highness, made him lose his mind. When I was young, I would see people being dragged off the streets for the smallest crimes and either sent away or…executed. And that madness remained, up until he forgot everything. That madness drove his Majesty to order for Varian, a fourteen-year-old boy, to be terrorized by the Royal Guard for _weeks_. He was just a boy without his father, a boy who made a mistake and was left alone to try to fix things.”  
  
She walked over to her with the nightgown. “Varian is one of the few people to actually care about me, to treat me kindly. The rest are my family.” She set the nightgown down and Rapunzel got up so she could help her get undressed. “If Varian wants to start over everything with a clean slate for his identity in the eyes of the people, then who am I to tell him ‘no’? Who am I to tell him he’s wrong, when a clean slate may be just what this Kingdom _needed_.”  
  
“And the Saporians?” Rapunzel asked. “We’re living in ‘New Saporia’.”  
  
“Well, only the Saporians and Varian actually call it that. To everyone else, it is still Corona.” Faith said as she worked. “They’re taking their stolen land back.”  
  
“’Stolen land’?” Rapunzel looked over her shoulder at her.  
  
“I don’t know the details, Varian said it’s not a happy story, but you can feel free to ask him tomorrow, Your Highness.” She shook her head.  
  
“Tomorrow…” Rapunzel looked forward, her brow furrowed.  
  
Tomorrow, she would be going to the quarry and making it clear to the people there that she was one-hundred percent onboard with his plan. How she was going to _do_ that was still a question she wasn’t sure how to answer. But, if she didn’t manage to convince them, then Eugene would be going to whatever hell Varian and Andrew went through.   
  
She felt so conflicted about Varian. If he was unstable before, he was completely unhinged now, and the worst part was that she didn’t know when he was going to go from gentle to harsh, from sweet words to threats. Just like in the dream, he was pushing and pulling her, twisting her around and lifting her eyes or lowering her to the ground below him, guiding her through the motions he wanted.  
  
The first time they danced in the dream, she had taken the lead. He was the one confused, insecure, unsure. New to his powers, she guessed. But the second time, after he had looked through her eyes, taken control of her body to use his powers with her hair, she was the one on defense. And she still was. He knew he had complete control. That, if he wished, he could control her very body. It was frightening…but also kind of exciting. She’d never felt so terrified but also…fascinated?   
  
Every moment she spent with Varian, she was losing track of herself, of her love for Eugene. Asleep or awake, he was there; distracting, attractive, making her hot and dizzy with his intense gaze.   
  
She didn’t know what to do.  
  
They finished getting her ready for bed and then Faith tucked her in and blew out the lanterns before going to the door. “Sleep well, Your Highness.”  
  
Rapunzel didn’t reply, and the door closed and locked. She stared out at the moon, mocking her with the knowledge of her helplessness at the hands of a boy she never expected to be a danger to her.  
  
\--  
  
Cassandra was out there somewhere. Varian stepped out into the courtyard and sighed, closing his eyes. “Juniper, I’m ready."  
  
“Good luck.” Juniper nodded, starting to play.  
  
Varian took off his gloves and slipped them into his pocket, then clasped them together as he focused, his hair and fingertips starting to glow, his hair drifting around his head. “Cassandra…where are you…” He murmured.  
  
He reached out, searching for the power of the Moonstone. She was on the move, he could sense, but he managed to pinpoint her location. She was running, her destination unknown, her mind unclear. He pushed in further and touched her mind, ever-so-slightly, just enough to catch her attention.  
  
 _Where are you running to, Cassandra?_  
  
He felt her stop short and then withdraw, chuckling a bit when he opened his eyes. “Okay, so I can do that. We’ll try again tomorrow, I need rest tonight.”  
  
Juniper nodded, lowering her lute. “Sleep well, kiddo.”  
  
He nodded and headed inside, going to his room.  
  
With any luck, that brief contact would at least get Cassandra to feel curious enough to come back. If not, he’d push her a little more tomorrow night. For now, he needed rest.  
  
\--  
  
At the sound of the door opening, Eugene looked up furiously from where he was chained to the bed by his wrists and ankles. It was morning now, sometime early, he guessed. His window had been covered by a curtain when he was left like this.  
  
Varian stood in the doorway, still dressed in that infuriating outfit, with that obviously-fake goatee on his face. He leaned against the door casually, looking at him like a fascinating animal. He growled a bit. “What do you want, Hairstripe?”  
  
“Ah, yes. Funny thing about that hairstripe.” Varian hummed. “Turns out, I have powers.”  
  
“What—nevermind.” Eugene struggled in his chains. “Let me out of this. I want to see Rapunzel!”  
  
“Considering you attacked the King’s _most_ _trusted advisor_ , I’d say you’re lucky this is all you’re going through.” He walked over to stand at the side of his bed. “Good morning, Dark Prince.”  
  
Eugene blinked. “Huh? What?”  
  
Varian grinned. “You _are_ the prince of the Dark Kingdom, aren’t you?”  
  
“How would you know this?” Eugene demanded. “Did Rapunzel tell you?”  
  
“Nah, I was just there when you told her.” Varian shrugged.  
  
“Kid, make sense. How could you have been there?” Eugene frowned.  
  
Varian hummed a bit. “Like I said, I have powers.” He closed his eyes and focused, his hair glowing blue.  
  
“What the hair?!” Eugene yelped.  
  
Varian opened his glowing eyes with a smile. “You see, Rapunzel and I have a connection, and I was able to use that connection to reach through and spy on you all from afar, through her eyes. Also, thanks to the demonic cultist coming to kill me and accidentally unlocking my powers in the process, I learned how to destroy ghosts so, you’re welcome for saving your asses there.”  
  
“Her hair…it glowed _blue_.” Eugene breathed. “You…you took control of her _body_!”  
  
“Yeah.” Varian sat on the edge of the bed, his hair going dark and the glow fading from his eyes. “Here’s the thing. I’m creating a gas that is going to erase the memories of the citizens of Corona. Play along and be my ally, like Rapunzel is, and you might not get your memories erased. Keep fighting us, and punching the people that come to bring you meals, and we just might use the Wand of Oblivium on you _right now_ and then send you off to the Dark Kingdom to be with your _dear old dad_.”  
  
“You wouldn’t.” Eugene struggled. “Rapunzel wouldn’t let you!”  
  
“Rapunzel,” Varian chuckled, “is completely under my control. Whatever I want to do, she’ll accept it.”  
  
“What did you _do_ to her?” Eugene growled.  
  
“We’ve had many secret meetings, in our dreams. Apparently, she likes what she sees.” Varian hummed, bringing his hand to his chin in a cocky way. “She kissed me last night.”  
  
Eugene thrashed in his chains. “You’re _lying_! What did you _do_ to her, Varian?!”  
  
He stood up. “Juniper will be coming with food for you soon. Behave and you’ll be reduced to one chain instead of four. Fight her and you’re going to the dungeon.” He grinned in a manic way. “And, let me tell you, that wasn’t _fun_ for me.”   
  
He walked over and stroked Eugene’s cheek with the tip of his finger, drawing circles. “Tell me, did you think _anything_ about the kid you left to be thrown into prison? Did you even _wonder_ what happened to him? If he was even _alive_? You saw my trial and then you left me without a goodbye and I was thrown into _hell_. Luckily, Andrew was already there, and he protected me. He was more of a friend to me than you _ever_ were, and he’s my dear brother now. I wanted _you_ to be that, but I was never anything but ‘that dangerous kid’ to you, was I? You were _just_ like _everyone else_!” He suddenly slapped Eugene across the face, leaving the man stunned as he stepped back.   
  
“If Andrew hadn’t been there…do you know what would have happened to me? I would’ve been used for more than just my mind. I would’ve been abused in more ways than just with punches and harsh words.” He wrapped his arms around himself, laughing bitterly. “By the King’s Order, I would’ve been broken down into silent obedience. Andrew made a deal with the guards to take anything they had planned for me on himself, until I was an adult. That’s all he could manage to get them to agree to.”  
  
He looked at Eugene. “But now, now Andrew and I are the ones giving the orders! The King is my puppet, the Queen is a pretty doll, the Princess is slowly but surely giving in to me and I am _loving_ it. The Royal Family that let me down, that shattered my heart and left me to _die_ is finally _completely_ under my control! Do you have _any_ idea how _good_ this feels, Eugene?! DO YOU?!” He laughed excitedly. “When I get my clean slate, no one will _ever_ look at me coldly again, no one will _ever_ throw stones or call me names again, I’ll finally be able to _live in peace_!”  
  
He calmed down and walked closer to him again. “And you can either be wiped with the rest of them, or prove you’re going to cooperate and embrace the clean slate without any conflict.” He said, lightly mussing Eugene’s hair before he went to the door. “Think about it, Eugene. I’m sure, anything you do, your friend Lance will follow your example.”  
  
Eugene clenched his fists. “I won’t let you win.”  
  
Varian chuckled and turned back to him. “Oh, Eugene. I already _have_.” He opened the door and walked out, closing it behind him.  
  
Eugene lay there in the silence, his hands slowly unclenching before he let out a groan. “That kid is messed uuuuup…”  
  
\--  
  
Rapunzel looked at her dresses, unsure of what she wanted to wear today. Purples and golds were in front of her and she ran her hands over them. Purple and Gold, the colors of Corona. But…she needed to prove she was completely on Varian’s side. She turned to Faith. “Faith, I know it might be a bit of a long-shot, but could you get me an outfit that matches Varian’s?”  
  
“Of course.” She smiled. “I’m sure Mr. Maisie will be happy to help. He helped Varian with his, after all.” She went to the door. “I will be back soon, Your Highness.”  
  
Rapunzel sighed, looking back at her dresses. “I’ll be here…”  
  
Breakfast wasn’t for another hour yet, but surely she’d have to wear one of these to it since there was no way Faith would be able to get the clothes she wanted so quickly. She was startled, therefore, when the door opened, and looked over expecting to see Faith. She supposed she should’ve expected Varian instead, since that was who came in and closed the door behind him.  
  
“Good morning, Rapunzel.” He said with a smile as he walked over to her. “Blue, that’s a new color.”  
  
“It’s my nightgown. Faith is getting me something new to wear.” Rapunzel said, blushing a bit at being seen by him in this. “Is it already time for breakfast?”  
  
“Not another hour.” He stopped behind her and she turned to him. “I checked in on Eugene. He’s doing alright, but he’s still being aggressive.”  
  
“I see.” Rapunzel sighed. “Thank you for checking on him for me.”  
  
He reached out and gently plucked at the sheer material that made up her sleeves, then moved his hand up to cup her cheek. “You’re really worried about him, aren’t you?”  
  
“Of course I am. He’s…my boyfriend, and my friend, besides.” She glanced away.  
  
“Your boyfriend, you say, but you keep kissing me. Last night, you kissed me on your own.” Varian raised an eyebrow.  
  
“I know, I know, I don’t know.” She pulled away from him, holding her head. “I just…I just wanted to do it. You’re not controlling me, right?”  
  
“Rapunzel, if I ever use my powers, my hair glows.” He reminded her. “The _only_ time I have controlled you was to help you fight those ghosts.”  
  
“Oh, well…” She sighed. “I don’t know. It’s those dreams, I think. And…and everything.”  
  
“What’s wrong with _these_ clothes?” Varian asked, looking past her.  
  
“Oh! Uhm, nothing, but I thought that, maybe, it would better help convince the people if I…matched you.” She played with her hair a bit. “I know, I know, silly idea—”  
  
“No, it’s a _great_ idea.” Varian grinned. “You’d be surprised what a change of clothes can do for how people view you.”  
  
She smiled. “Yeah? You…you like that idea?”  
  
“Can’t wait to see you wearing it.” He grinned. “I know you won’t wear boots, but how about something similar, but without feet?”  
  
“Like…gauntlets, for legs?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Yeah.” Varian nodded.  
  
“That…okay, that sounds cool.” She nodded. “I’ll try it.”  
  
“Good.” He kissed her forehead, then paused and tilted her chin up to kiss her lips. “There. Payback for yesterday.” He grinned.  
  
She blushed and lightly shoved him back. He backed up, laughing.  
  
It was weird. She _shouldn’t_ be feeling so relaxed around him, he had _taken over her Kingdom_ , for Sun’s sake! But, it just felt so easy around him, like she didn’t have to try to impress him. She couldn’t place it, but she _liked_ being around him, even though he had clearly demonstrated he was dangerous and had cruel intentions. But, at the same time, she could understand his reasoning. If someone treats you like the bad guy all your life, it just seemed _easier_ to just give in to the label, especially if you got everything you ever _wanted_ out of it. And Varian, well, he had everything he wanted. Control, power, his father back, _her_ father reset to where Varian could mold him as he liked. The ultimate puppet king for the cleverest puppeteer. He had everyone dancing to his tune and he was eagerly leading them along like the pied piper of legend.  
  
“Oh, by the way,” he grinned, “last night, before I went to sleep, I reached for Cassandra. And I found her.”  
  
“You did?” Rapunzel gasped. “Where is she?”  
  
“I don’t actually know, but I dropped her a message. If that doesn’t get her coming here, I’ll drop another.” He shrugged.  
  
“W-Why do you want her to come?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Oh, so I can take what’s, apparently, supposed to be _mine_.” Varian smiled. “The Moonstone she stole.”  
  
“Oh, right.” She fidgeted with her hair again. “I wonder if Faith is coming back soon…”  
  
He reached out and ran his hand through her loose hair. “Do you want me to help you put it into a Saporian style?”  
  
“Uhm…sure?” She shrugged.  
  
He grinned. “There’s going to be _lot_ of braids.”  
  
By the time Faith came back with her new outfit, Varian had gotten half her hair braided into little braids. Faith set down the clothes and came over to help with the rest of it unprompted, the two of them working on her hair as she sat in the chair in front of her makeup table.  
  
“Maisie made her clothes?” Varian guessed.  
  
“I gave him her measurements and said she wants it to look like yours and he did the rest.” Faith replied.  
  
“Nice work.” He chuckled a bit.  
  
They finished the little braids, then Varian and Faith both worked together to tie them all together in a bun with the braids hanging down to almost touch the floor. “There we go.” He said, stepping back. “Let’s get you dressed, Your Highness.”  
  
Faith cleared her throat and pointed to the door. Varian laughed and headed out, closing the door behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing's more loyal than a change of clothes!


	9. 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a change of clothes, Rapunzel visits Eugene and the quarry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Rapunzel got up off the chair and looked herself over before she went over to the clothes.  
  
As requested, and she _really_ wanted to know how “Maisie” did it so quickly, the outfit was like Varian’s. It had a dark-gray short-sleeved shirt and a brown belt with an off-white skirt and to top it all off was a black waistcoat that snugly fit her sides and red gloves and scarf. She left the supplied boots alone, then picked up the goggles with a raised eyebrow. “…Just like Varian’s.” She said, looking them over thoughtfully. Faith took them gently and showed her how to unfasten the strap before she put them on Rapunzel’s head with the strap under her pinned-up hair and fastened them on again.  
  
“Okay.” Rapunzel went to the mirror to look at herself again. “How do I look?” She looked at Faith.  
  
“I think he’ll love it.” She smiled.  
  
Pascal climbed up her skirt and settled into one of the pockets of her waistcoat. Faith went to the door and Rapunzel looked herself over some more, admiring the handiwork.  
  
“Beautiful.”  
  
She turned to look at Varian, who was looking at her in awe. “Yeah, it’s…uhm…pretty cool.” She fidgeted with the collar of the waistcoat. “I didn’t put the boots on.” She pointed to them.  
  
“I’ll take care of it.” Varian winked and grabbed them before swiftly leaving.   
  
Rapunzel looked back at her reflection, then walked over to sit on the balcony railing, looking out at the city. Faith walked over to sit with her and Rapunzel focused her attention on the girl.  
  
As she’d said, she was now in the blue Lady-in-Waiting uniform. Her long, brown hair was pinned up, but her bangs were still distinctive enough to recognize her from any others. Her gray eyes were turned towards the city with a soft but unreadable expression and Rapunzel wondered what that was about.  
  
“Have you ever been to the quarry?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“I am a maid; I have no business there.” She replied. “However, as your Lady-in-Waiting, I suppose I will be accompanying you today.”  
  
“I was just wondering what to…expect.” Rapunzel admitted, looking down at her feet. The off-white skirt was unfamiliar, the black coat and gray shirt new to her, the red gloves and scarf that matches Varian were unusual and the weight of the goggles on her head was….she’d get used to it.   
  
The door opened and Varian came in with one hand behind his back. He closed the door and walked over to Rapunzel, who was looking at him curiously. “May I see your legs?” He asked, kneeling down. She shrugged and extended one of her legs. “Close your eyes.” He prompted with a grin. She shrugged and closed her eyes, She felt him wrap a hand around her leg, and then something was being pulled onto her leg, with a thin part at the bottom of her feet. Then he did the same with the other one and she heard him say, “Okay. Open them.”  
  
She looked down and saw what _looked_ like it was supposed to be boots, but it didn’t have anything on her feet aside from a thin strap at the bottom that secured it in place. She looked at it curiously and ran her fingers over the straps before tentatively placing her foot down on the floor on the balcony. Varian stood up as she slowly got up. “So?” He asked with a smile.  
  
“It’s…I like it.” She smiled.  
  
“Thought you would. Maisie does quality work.” Varian chuckled. “He never lets me watch how he does it, but I’m honestly suspecting that it’s magic, with how quickly he was able to make yours.”  
  
Rapunzel nodded. “Sounds about right.” She looked herself over again. “I like that he gave me a shirt and waistcoat. And look at these pockets!” She placed her hands in them.  
  
Varian chuckled. “That’s awesome, Sundrop.”  
  
She blinked. “’Sundrop’?”  
  
“What, can’t I give you a nickname?” He shrugged.  
  
“Uhm…okay.” She nodded.  
  
“Come on, it’s about time for breakfast.” He offered her his hand and she took it, letting him lead her to the door. Faith followed behind them quietly.  
  
Rapunzel noticed right away that the Saporian guards’ demeanors had shifted with her change of clothes. They didn’t see her as the rebel princess anymore, but as one of them, and they nodded in greeting and saluted as they passed them on the way out.  
  
“Do I really look okay?” Rapunzel asked. “Maybe the goggles are too much?”  
  
Varian chuckled. “I dunno, I like them.”  
  
“You’re biased.” She nudged him and he laughed.  
  
“Hey,” she asked as they walked, “why ‘Sundrop’?”  
  
“Because you’re the Sundrop.” He smiled. “And…I don’t think you’d want me to call you ‘Raps’.”  
  
She felt a sting at the old nickname and shook her head. “No…thank you for thinking of that.”  
  
“And ‘Sunshine’ and ‘Blondie’ are already taken.” He went on.  
  
She nodded, thinking of Eugene. She hoped he was alright. “Varian…before we go, may I please see Eugene?”  
  
He looked at her, then smiled a bit. “Alright.”  
  
“Really?” She brightened up.  
  
“Yeah.” He nodded. “You’ve proven your loyalty enough.” He nudged her with a grin.  
  
\--  
  
When they came down to the breakfast table in their matching clothes, they got different sounds of approval from everyone gathered. The guy with the tall hat came over to inspect how it fit on her and she guessed this was “Maisie”. “Is everything fitting?” He asked, looking at her. “Are the boots to your satisfaction?”  
  
“Yes.” Rapunzel smiled. “Thank you, Maisie.”  
  
He nodded, then went back to his chair. Varian walked over and pulled out Rapunzel’s chair for her, then took his own seat after she sat down.  
  
“You look wonderful, darling.” Queen Arianna said cheerfully.   
  
She seemed to be falling into the idea of being a mother rather well, though she was _still_ feeling flustered about actually having done the deed with her husband. Rapunzel supposed she couldn’t blame her, she’d probably be just as flustered.  
  
“We’re going to be going to the quarry this afternoon.” Varian told them. “Princess Rapunzel wants to meet with one of her friends before we go. I’ll be with her at all times, of course. This particular one has been…”  
  
“Violent?” Juniper remarked.  
  
Kai rubbed a still-healing bruise on his cheek.  
  
“Did that improve when you went to bring him breakfast?” Varian asked her.  
  
“He growled, but he didn’t attack. Also, I think he wants to kill you. Or at least make you feel pain.” Juniper chuckled. “What’d you _do_?”  
  
“Told him that if he attacked again, I’d send him to the dungeon.” Varian shrugged. “He hit Kai, what was I _supposed_ to do? Let him get away with it?”  
  
Kai smiled a bit.  
  
“So…” Rapunzel looked thoughtful, then pointed at each of them in turn. “Andrew, Juniper, Kai, Maisie, Clementine. Right?”  
  
“That’s right.” Andrew chuckled. “We didn’t give you a proper introduction, did we?”  
  
“Yeah, well, I _did_ attack.” She shrugged.  
  
“You look stunning in black, Rapunzel.” Andrew grinned.  
  
Rapunzel fidgeted with her coat collar. “Do you…like my hair?”  
  
“Your hair looks great.” Juniper grinned. Rapunzel beamed.  
  
It was scary how easily she was falling into this role, into this situation. Like her parents, only without the memory-wiping, she was just letting Varian and the Saporians tell her what to do, she was asking for approval on things like how she looked. But at the same time, there was something freeing about just letting someone else call the shots this time, after months of making so many hard choices, with often disastrous results. And, really, was Varian’s plan so bad? No one would be getting hurt, they’d just…forget about bad things. What was wrong with that?  
  
She assumed that it wouldn’t be as extreme as what had happened to her parents.  
  
\--  
  
After breakfast, Varian took Rapunzel to Eugene’s room. He knocked once to alert him that they were here and then opened the door to lead her in.  
  
Eugene was only cuffed by one chain, but he was still cuffed to the bed. He looked up at them as they entered, his eyes sifting to look Rapunzel up and down, taking in her outfit. Varian closed the door and stood against it while Rapunzel approached Eugene.  
  
“Matching outfits.” He remarked.  
  
She fidgeted with her shirt collar awkwardly. “Uhm…yeah. I thought…it might be good to dress…Saporian. And I thought Varian’s outfit was cool, so…”  
  
“You’re not even trying to fight, then.” Eugene frowned. “You’re perfectly happy with everyone losing their memories. With your parents forgetting who you are.”  
  
“That wasn’t intentional, Clementine used too much magic. Varian has been helping them remember things, and _I_ personally am perfectly happy with them _not_ acting like I’m going to be kidnapped again at any moment, like they _have_ been ever since my hair became long again!” Rapunzel said firmly. “I’m getting to know them and they’re getting to know me, and we don’t have the eighteen years apart _weighing_ on us any—”  
  
“Is it true you kissed him?” Eugene asked, cutting her off.  
  
Rapunzel blinked. “What? Why would you ask—wait, kissed _who_?”  
  
“Varian.” Eugene glared past her at the teenager leaning against the door.   
  
“Wha—I mean—” Rapunzel stammered. “It was the heat of the—I wanted to prove I was loyal to—and then—” She floundered, stepping back with pink cheeks. “How did you find out?”  
  
“He told me.” Eugene scowled. “Came in _gloating_.”  
  
Rapunzel looked at Varian. “You did?”  
  
Varian shrugged. “I told him about my clean-slate plan. Might’ve gotten a bit gloaty, wanted to rub it into his face that you were into it. And also that you kissed me, which you already said you did to try to prove your loyalty after I demanded you prove it.”  
  
Rapunzel looked at Eugene. “Y-Yeah, it wasn’t anything serious, Eugene.”  
  
Eugene reached for her and she moved forward to lean into his outstretched arms, sitting with him. He reached up and ran his fingers through her hair, tilting his head at the hairstyle. “This is…new.”  
  
“It’s Saporian.” Rapunzel said, smiling nervously. “Is it…does it look okay?”  
  
“It’s…different.” Eugene gently turned her head so he could see it better. “It’s cute, but…different. Blondie, aren’t you worried that you’re trying too hard to ‘prove your loyalty’, that you’re molding yourself into something you’re not?”  
  
She looked at him. “I’m still myself, Eugene. It’s just an outfit.” She shook her head. “But…I _do_ agree with his idea. At least, as far as erasing the hate. And he’s going to help us with Cassandra, too.”  
  
“Help with Cass—how?” Eugene frowned, looking at Varian.  
  
“Don’t worry about it.” Varian waved his hand dismissively, then pulled out a pocket-watch. “Sundrop, we should be going soon.”  
  
“’Sundrop’?” Eugene raised an eyebrow.  
  
“It’s a nickname. All the other ones were taken.” Varian shrugged.  
  
“Yeah, but who said you could give her a nickname?” Eugene held Rapunzel protectively.  
  
Varian sighed and put his pocket-watch back in his pocket.  
  
“Eugene, please…” Rapunzel sat back and held his hands in her gloved ones. “Don’t upset them. I’m trying to improve your situation, but if you keep being aggressive, I can’t convince anyone to let you out of here.”  
  
Eugene’s expression softened. “Ah, Sunshine…” He gently cupped her cheek in his hand, and she leaned into it. “You’re always so concerned about others…I’m worried about _you_ , though. The whole Cassandra thing, and now…now _Varian_ …” He glared at Varian over Rapunzel’s shoulder. “He’s been messing with you, and now he’s just…he won’t even let us have a moment alone.”  
  
“Because I don’t trust you.” Varian said calmly. “And she’s _always_ supervised, as the Princess. As far as her parents know, _you’re_ a violent criminal that attacked their _trusted advisor_ with a _sword_. And then you proceeded to punch the most gentle of the Saporians when he came to bring you food, which is just upsetting everyone but especially Juniper, his sister.”  
  
Eugene held Rapunzel closer. “I don’t trust him, Blondie.”  
  
Rapunzel sighed. “Maybe not…but, _he’s_ the one in control here. I can’t do anything against him if I wanted to.” Rapunzel whispered.  
  
“Which means you _don’t_?” Eugene looked at her.  
  
Rapunzel pulled away a bit. “Eugene, please…cooperate and you can be free.” She looked at his chained ankle sadly.  
  
Eugene sighed. “If they hadn’t taken my lockpick…That Juniper or whatever checked me _thoroughly_.” He glanced away, his cheeks pink.  
  
Varian chuckled, then turned to open the door. “I’ll give you five minutes.” He stepped out and closed the door.  
  
Eugene looked at his shadow still at the other side of the door, then looked at Rapunzel, speaking quietly. “I just…I just want you to be careful, okay? I trust you, and while I don’t agree with his… _plan_ , I trust that _you_ know what you’re doing.” He gently kissed her. “I just hope that you’re planning to actually take him down from the inside after you’ve gotten them to believe you’re really one of them, because this is one messed-up plan and you _can’t_ let him go through with this, do you know how many _lives_ that would ruin, how many people would have to rebuild, how many people would be _reset_? What about all of our pub-thug friends? Attila? Shorty? Ulf?”   
  
Rapunzel drew back with a sigh. “I…but, they were so _cruel_ to Varian, even _before_ he stole the flower. No one would help him, he was all alone, I…” She looked down. “I don’t know how I can fix this. I don’t want him to do it but, at the same time, I don’t want him to hurt anymore.”  
  
“Rapunzel, the kid is _insane_.” Eugene frowned.  
  
“Because of what _we_ did to him, Eugene! He was a bit _eccentric_ before, definitely _overeager_ , but he wasn’t a bad kid and he wasn’t insane! But we let him fester, we left him to freeze in the snow and his pure heart died and then he did all those things out of desperation and then he was thrown into prison and I don’t know what happened to him there but he was _hurt_ , Eugene!” Rapunzel insisted.  
  
Eugene pursed his lips. “…Rapunzel…”  
  
“Sundrop, it’s been five minutes.” Varian said, opening the door. “Time to go.”  
  
“Oh, already?” She got up and walked over to join him. “Right. See you later, Eugene.”  
  
“Rapunzel, wait—” Eugene started, but Varian shut the door and cut him off before he led Rapunzel away.  
  
“VARIAN!” He yelled after them, and Varian smirked as he walked off with Rapunzel.  
  
\--  
  
They went outside and he led her to a hot-air balloon. Rapunzel climbed in and he climbed in after her, followed by Faith, who had been waiting for them. “I’m kind of excited.” She admitted as he started the balloon and they took off. “But also nervous?”  
  
“That’s normal.” He assured her.  
  
“What’s the quarry like?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“It’s…a quarry.” Varian shrugged. “It’s full of miners and stone and there’s some structures. You have to see it.” He said as she giggled at his attempt to describe it.  
  
They drifted over the landscape until Varian landed them on a raised platform outside a gated area. Then he took her hand and led her out, Faith following behind them quietly. “The crystals they’re mining here are a key component to my Quirineon.” He explained as they walked up to the gate. A guard signaled to another and the gate was opened for them. He led her through. “They will increase the strength of it so that it hits everyone in the city at once.”  
  
He led her to a structure and up a set of stairs. From up here, she could look down and see her beloved townspeople mining the green crystals. Varian smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist as he led her over to stand where she could be seen by everyone.  
  
“Is that the Princess?”  
  
“The Princess is back! It’s true!”  
  
“Why is she with Varian?”  
  
“Princess, are you here to save us?”  
  
Rapunzel clutched at her shirt a bit, feeling nervous suddenly. “Maybe…this wasn’t a good idea.”  
  
“You have to show them that you’re onboard with this. You don’t want your people to live in hate and fear all their lives, do you?” He said softly. “This is for the best.”  
  
Rapunzel looked at him. “Can’t there be another way? Maybe…maybe I can convince them that you’ve changed. After all, you haven’t _hurt_ anyone, right?” She paused. “What happens if they don’t make their quota?”  
  
“They get put in the stocks.” Varian shrugged. “You know, as an example. No one’s being beaten or killed, Rapunzel, don’t worry.” He glanced away. “After what I went through, I wouldn’t beat _anyone_.”  
  
Rapunzel looked at him with concern and gently took his hand. “Varian…”  
  
People were still calling out to her, but she found she didn’t really care, she was more focused on the poor, damaged child in front of her that was forced to grow up far too fast.  
  
“What… _did_ happen to you?” She asked, reached up to cup his cheek.  
  
He sighed and pulled away, his hand gripping the metal railing. “Hell. It was Hell. And it would have been worse if Andrew wasn’t there. Every day, we were beaten either physically or psychologically. They forced Andrew to eat meat, they taunted me with the possibility of escape, they’d take us out to see my father and challenge us to earn our freedom in a twisted game of tag, and have I mentioned I _hate_ the game of tag now? By the King’s order, I was constantly playing a cruel game of tag through the black rocks surrounding my home, me trying desperately to get away and find help, them forcing me to stay in Old Corona.”  
  
Rapunzel walked over to look at him. “Varian…I’m _so sorry_ you had to endure that. That my father… _did_ that to you…but, forcing people to mine crystals so you can erase their memories…” She gently cupped his cheek. “How much will they _lose_ , Varian?”  
  
“Only as far back as when I did everything.” He stepped back. “Back to when no one knew who I was.”  
  
“How will you explain the missing time, Varian? You can’t explain everything away as a sea monster attack.” She took his hands in hers. “Varian—”  
  
“Didn’t we agree this is for the best? Unless you can convince them to act like nothing happened and treat me with _respect_ , this is going to happen.” He pulled her close, his arm around her waist. “Or, are you having second thoughts about your loyalties, Princess?”  
  
She reached up and gripped his coat. “Varian…”  
  
“Are you going to lead them in a rebellion against me, after all?” He looked at the people.  
  
Rapunzel clenched her fists on his coat. “That’s not fair…I’m not—”  
  
“Prove it, then.”  
  
She looked at him, then at the people. “Wait—prove— _now_?!”  
  
“You say pretty words and dress the part, but you need to prove you’re _really_ on my side to them.” Varian said, looking back at her.  
  
Rapunzel looked at her people, who were still calling to her even though she couldn’t hear them properly anymore, and then buried her face in his shoulder. “That’s not fair…I don’t _do_ well under pressure.”  
  
“Then, let me take care of things for you.” Varian said, gently coaxing her head up to look at him. “All they need is one little gesture, proof that you’re _not_ going to lead them.”  
  
She swallowed nervously. “But…they all know I’m with _Eugene_ …”  
  
“He’s not here.” Varian gently cupped her chin in his hand. “And they need to know you’re not going to be their savior, that this…is inevitable.”  
  
She gripped his coat tighter, the fabric bunching in her hand. “Varian…”  
  
“I can’t make the first move, Princess. That would have the opposite effect.” He glanced at the people, then focused on her. “I can only invite it.”  
  
She looked at the people, then him, then their feet before she swallowed back her fear. Varian was right. If she wanted to spare her parents the grief, if she wanted to spare Varian the pain and the people their cruel hate…she needed to show that she wasn’t going to stop him.  
  
She looked up at him, then leaned in, closing the gap between them by pressing her lips against his. His hold on her waist tightened, and one hand moved up to gently slip under her braids to cup her head as he deepened it.  
  
This was it, then. She’d officially, publicly kissed Varian. The silence it created was deafening, you could hear a pin drop. Someone dropped their pickaxe in shock, but Varian didn’t seem to care and she only pressed in closer.  
  
Then they pulled away, slowly, and he took her hand, leading her away from the now-silent people. They’d completed the performance, exit stage left.  
  
“That was…” She cleared her throat. “Intense.”  
  
“Yeah.” Varian nodded, his face pink. “Let’s not do that again.”  
  
She smiled a bit. She hadn’t even _thought_ that he was probably just as nervous as she was and was just _really good at pretending he wasn’t_. She walked next to him and nudged him a bit. “Look at you, acting all cool when you’re still just as awkward and shy as before.”  
  
He smirked at her. “Sure, but at least _I’m_ good at hiding it.”  
  
She shoved him a bit and he laughed, heading back over to where Faith waited by the balloon. Rapunzel watched him, then her smile faded as she looked back towards the quarry. ‘This…is for the best.’ She thought. ‘It’s not fair, what he went through, and if this is the only way to make amends for that…’   
  
She looked back towards Varian and Faith, who were talking and laughing. Varian messed with her bangs and she shoved his goggles down over his eyes in retaliation. He of course grabbed her headdress and then climbed up the balloon to make her chase him. It made her think of her and Cass, and the fun they used to have. She sighed, wrapping her arms around herself.  
  
“Sundrop, you coming?” Varian called.  
  
Rapunzel nodded and lowered her arms to her sides as she walked over to join them. “So…what’s next on the agenda?”  
  
“Well, I’m not sure.” Varian shrugged as he offered her a hand and helped her climb inside. “Probably just more taking care of the kingdom, doing alchemy, all that fun stuff. Unless you had another idea in mind?” He grinned.  
  
She got into the basket and then Varian handed back Faith’s headdress before he went to start the balloon. “I…might be able to think of _something_ to break the monotony.”  
  
“If _you_ don’t, the _Saporians_ will.” Varian chuckled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Show's over, back to work!


	10. 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel comes to a sudden realization and everything changes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

It was scary how quickly Rapunzel was falling into this new role of being a Princess in New Saporia, but she was also kind of…enjoying it? She and Juniper found out, when she was left with her because Varian had to do other things, they actually had a lot in common. Extremely long hair, intense care for people they love, a feral rage at anyone who hurts them, and they even both play music!  
  
“You know, I’ve never had anyone I could do something like this with.” Juniper said as she braided Rapunzel’s hair, one of many braids since she’d started doing the Saporian style daily. It had now been three days since she went to the quarry and, from what she was hearing, rebellion had dropped to an all-time low after she’d…kissed Varian in front of everyone.  
  
“Really?” Rapunzel asked as she stroked Pascal’s back.   
  
Pascal had warmed up to Juniper right away, surprisingly. Andrew had made a joke about it being because he could sense another reptile and she’d thrown a pillow at him before telling both Andrew and Varian to go away.   
  
“Yeah.” Juniper nodded. “I was six years old when our dad was killed, and I never had any younger sisters. So, it was just me and my older brothers, Andrew and Kai, being cared for by our moms. Then Andrew’s mom died, and so we were left with mine. Then, when she died, we were raised by Clementine until we reached adulthood, though she’s still taking care of us even now.”  
  
“You didn’t have any friends your age, or mine?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“When you’re in charge, it’s hard to _have_ friends. Everyone is looking up to you, no one sees you as an equal.” Juniper sighed. “Kind of lonely, really. And then when Andrew went missing, I was juggling royal tasks and training and looking for him. We finally managed to track him down to Corona, but by that time…” She paused, her expression grim. “Up until that day…Andrew had never wanted to hurt anyone. He hated the sight of blood, he hated hurting people. When I broke into the Corona prison…and he was in so much pain…I found him curled around Varian, holding him like he was the most precious thing in the world. His back was bloody, and his hair was loose around his shoulders. I went to him, and do you know what he said to me?”  
  
“What?” Rapunzel looked over her shoulder at her.  
  
“’Kill them. Kill them all. They don’t deserve to live’. And his voice…so strained. It sounded like he’d been screaming over and over, but no one heard. So, you know what I did?” Juniper went back to her braiding.  
  
Rapunzel swallowed nervously. “What did you do?”  
  
“I killed them. I killed every last one of the bastards who _violated_ my brother. And I _loved_ every moment.” She tied it off, then went to the next one. “Varian wouldn’t send anyone to High-Security, Rapunzel, don’t worry. Though, even if he did, the guards have all been changed and those ex-criminals that were unfit for society will never hurt anyone again. Because, y’know, they’re dead.”  
  
“My father promised me that he would get Varian help, that he’d take care of him.” Rapunzel sighed. “He promised…”  
  
“He never intended to. Has he told you about the Saporian Hunters?” Juniper asked.  
  
“The _what_?” Rapunzel frowned.  
  
“Guess not, then. Before you were born, before King Frederic was King, Saporians were hunted down and either killed or enslaved in the castle. No one knows why it stopped, but one day it did and the Hunters were done away with. Or, so we thought.” She pursed her lips, pausing in her braiding. “When Varian described the men that hunted him, we recognized the uniforms of the Saporian Hunters. Red tunics, black capes, iron masks to cover their faces, all completely identical.”  
  
“The Royal Guard wore those.” Rapunzel breathed.  
  
“Yeah, that’s what Varian said. It was the Royal Guard, sent by the King himself, all to harass a _child_. So, you can guess that he _never_ intended to get Varian help.” Her lips curled into a scowl. “And, don’t worry, he let the guards ‘take care’ of both him _and_ my brother. Andrew protected him the best he could, but he could only protect him from _certain_ things.”  
  
Rapunzel sighed, glancing away. “I can’t _believe_ him…I _trusted_ him…”  
  
“Well, hey, it’s in the past.” Juniper smiled and went back to braiding. “Now, your father is better, nicer, and the guards that hurt them are dead. And Varian is going to get his clean slate, and we’re going to get our land back. It’s a happy ending for everyone.”  
  
Rapunzel looked forward. “ _Some_ might not see it that way.” She said softly, thinking of how Eugene wouldn’t even meet her eyes the last time she’d tried to visit him. Lance and Shorty had been released, both of them deciding cooperation was better than isolation.  
  
“Hmm, _some_ might just be jealous.” Juniper chuckled. “You and Varian seem to be really close. How many times have you kissed now?”  
  
Rapunzel blushed, thinking of those times. They’d started kissing every night now, which brought their kiss count up to…seven. Eight, if they kissed tonight. She still didn’t know why she did it, but she did it. Last night he’d pinned her up against her makeup table and kissed her, turning her head as he pressed against her back. It was a new, but kind of exciting, position that Eugene and her had never done. And Varian’s kisses were always so passionate, just like him.  
  
“Uh…” She looked back at her. “Seven?”  
  
“Kid must be _good_ , if you’re kissing him _that_ often.” She smirked.  
  
“I-I mean, we only really kiss once a day now, but the first day we kissed three times and then the second day we kissed once and now it’s been three days…” She started to become flustered.  
  
“Well, don’t go spreading your legs for him yet, he’s still a kid for another couple years.” Juniper grinned.  
  
Rapunzel blinked. “Spreading…what?”  
  
“Oh, don’t tell me you don’t know about sex, Princess.” Juniper raised an eyebrow. At her confused expression, she laughed. “Okay, then. Guess that’s what we’re talking about today.”  
  
\--  
  
Varian sighed as he paced the floor. The King of Equis was coming over to visit for a diplomatic discussion on trade routes. If he saw the streets empty, he might think that something was amiss. They couldn’t have that.   
  
King Frederic wanted to surprise him with a prank, an idea that Varian had gently turned down with the explanation of not spoiling peaceful relations with the Kingdom of Equis. He’d been disappointed but accepted it. It seemed, based on what he had been researching about the Royal Couple, that they had a childhood rivalry, and also were both Queen Arianna’s suitors. He'd never met King Trevor, but he doubted he could be any worse than King Frederic.  
  
He decided that, for appearances’ sake, they’d close the mines for the duration of his visit and let people go on as normal, but heavily watched for any rebellion. He _still_ hadn’t found Xavier, Monty, or some of the palace staff, but he’d worry about that later. They seemed to be lying low, especially since Rapunzel made her appearance at his side, and weren’t as much of a problem as usual.  
  
Speaking of a problem, he needed to talk to Eugene. He headed for his room and knocked twice to let him know he was there before he opened the door and stepped inside.  
  
“And to what do I owe the pleasure of a visit from the _most trusted_ Royal Advisor himself?” Eugene asked, lying on his back on the bed.  
  
Varian walked over to him. “Aren’t you tired of being ridiculous?”  
  
“Aren’t _you_ tired of pretending you’re something you’re _not_?” Eugene said coldly.  
  
Varian raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”  
  
“Please.” Eugene looked at him. “You think you’re in control? You think you’re this big, tough leader? You’re a _kid_. Andrew is _manipulating_ you, which he is incredibly _good_ at, by the way.”  
  
“Andrew’s not doing anything to me but supporting my goals. He has his goals and I have mine. As long as he gets back the stolen Saporian land, that’s all he wants. Corona is mine to do with as I please.” Varian said calmly.  
  
“But Rapunzel isn’t.” Eugene sat up and glared at him. “Rapunzel _isn’t_ yours.”  
  
Varian chuckled. “If _that’s_ so, then why has she been _kissing_ me every night? Why is it _my_ name on her lips when she falls asleep on my shoulder while we’re reading together? Face it, Eugene, her smiles aren’t for _you_ anymore.” He moved a hand to his chest. “Rapunzel and I have a connection you could _never_ hope to touch, that goes beyond the physical, and she’s making her choice. She’s the one initiating the kisses, leaning into me, holding my hand, running her fingers through my hair. She dresses up to match me and asks if she’s pretty and her smile when I tell her she’s beautiful is the _best_ thing I’ve ever seen.”  
  
He walked over to the door, then turned to him with a thoughtful expression. “I admit, I _never_ really thought my feelings for her would ever grow beyond admiration, even when I _hated_ her. But, we had so many close calls and then we met in Matthew’s strange world, in her mind, and then we shared so many dreams and then she kissed me. She. Kissed. Me. I didn’t kiss her at the start, and I tried keeping it to the cheek or the hand, but she keeps going for the lips and who am I to say no?” He shrugged with a grin.  
  
Eugene got off the bed so quickly that his chain rattled. “She’s just trying to lower your guard so she can save her people!”  
  
“She kissed me in front of the quarry.” Varian smirked. “She could’ve saved them there, she could’ve attacked me, I’ve let my guard down often enough around her she doesn’t _need_ to keep pretending, but she’s still here and she’s still with me and we’re _happy_.”  
  
“Really?” Eugene walked towards him, the chain stopping him from fully reaching him. “Because when she’s with _me_ , she’s telling me that she only did it to prove she was on your side.”  
  
Varian raised an eyebrow. “You want proof, then? Okay.” He walked closer to him and smiled slyly. “Why don’t you join us for dinner tonight?”  
  
Eugene frowned. “I don’t know what you’re planning, but fine. I’ll accept your invitation.”  
  
“Juniper will collect you tonight, then.” He walked to the door and opened it. “See you later. I’ve got a visit to arrange for.” He sighed dramatically. “An advisor’s work is never done.” He waved as he walked out and closed the door behind him.  
  
\--  
  
“Alright, so his seal is actually married now.” Rapunzel said, sitting with her parents to show them her journal entry. Juniper sat nearby, playing the Hymn of the Cosmos again, since her parents liked it so much. “So, he may or may not be bringing both of them with him, if he brings the seals at all.   
  
“I should make sure to congratulate him on their marriage.” King Frederic said thoughtfully. “ _That_ will certainly help things go smoothly.”  
  
“It should, yeah.” Rapunzel nodded. “I…should probably apologize for being, uhm…troublesome during the wedding, though.”  
  
“Yes, you do seem to have upset him.” King Frederic said as he looked through the journal.   
  
Juniper chuckled. “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure everything goes well, Your Majesty.”  
  
Rapunzel nodded. “Thanks, Juniper.”  
  
“Oh. This is the young man that came with you. Are you with him?” Queen Arianna noticed, looking a picture of Rapunzel and Eugene.  
  
Rapunzel sighed. “It’s…complicated.”  
  
“Well, you and Varian make a cute couple, so I’m surprised.” Queen Arianna admitted.  
  
Rapunzel sighed heavily. “Like I said. It’s complicated. We met, uhm…” She faltered. There was no way to tell them the truth about how they met, was there? “We met at the festival held every year for my birthday and fell in love. But, now…” She played with one of the braids in her hair. “Now, I’m not so sure. Varian is so good to me, and so passionate and…and he seems to know what he wants and goes for it without any reservations, and he’s so…it’s hard. I’m having trouble with…my heart.”  
  
Queen Arianna smiled and placed her hand on Rapunzel’s. “I know the feeling. I’m conflicted, honestly, because part of me is really looking forward to seeing Trevor, but part of me is… _dreading_ it, because I’m concerned about dealing with old feelings I shouldn’t _have_ anymore.”  
  
King Frederic smiled fondly. “Well, we both need to adjust to it. I _do_ care for you, though, even if I’ve forgotten much of our lives.”  
  
Rapunzel smiled softly. She and Varian had both been working together the past three days to help them better remember their love, and knowing they had a daughter seemed to help reignite the spark.  
  
The memories were still lost, though, and it was better this way. So much better.   
  
“…party might be a good idea.”  
  
“Andrew, you _know_ how I am with crowds.”  
  
“Yes, but it might impress the King if we held a party in his honor.” Andrew said as he and Varian came in.  
  
“Do I have to dress up for it?” Varian asked.  
  
“Maybe slick your hair back and ditch the coat for something more formal.” Andrew chuckled.  
  
“What are you two talking about?” Juniper asked, looking up from her playing.  
  
“We’re just planning for King Trevor’s visit.” Varian said as he and Andrew sat next to Juniper. “ _Andrew_ thinks we should throw him a party. _I_ think it’s a bit much for a simple visit about trade routes.”  
  
“Varian’s right, he might assume something’s strange if we throw him a party.” Rapunzel said, shaking her head.  
  
“Well, seems I’m outnumbered.” Andrew chuckled. “Juniper?”  
  
“I don’t care.” Juniper shrugged. “The sooner he leaves the better, if you ask me. I can’t _stand_ that guy.”  
  
“Have you met him?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“I spent some time in Equis when I was looking for Andrew. The creep _flirted_ with me.” Juniper made a face. “And he wasn’t exactly polite about it, asked if I wanted to be in his harem. Gross.”  
  
“What—you didn’t think I’d go straight to Corona, based on the context?” Andrew asked.  
  
“Context, _what_ context, you just took off!” Juniper frowned at him.  
  
Andrew shrugged. “Sorry.”  
  
Juniper rolled her eyes.  
  
Rapunzel laughed a bit. “Sorry, I just… _wow_.”  
  
“How’s it feel to be bullied?” Varian teased him.  
  
Andrew shrugged and held up his hands in surrender. “Okay. No party.”  
  
“While we’re on the topic of awkward discussions,” Varian said, looking at the royal family, “I’ve invited Eugene to join us for dinner. It doesn’t feel right, him still being locked up. I’m hoping we can convince him to stop being hostile, by extending the hand of kindness to him.”  
  
“That would be good.” Rapunzel nodded, fidgeting with one of her braids again.  
  
From what Rapunzel had gathered, her parents knew about Andrew and Varian being in Corona, but not about them being in prison. Juniper, Kai, Maisie and Clementine were on the way to meet up with them after finally receiving a message from Andrew, who was there uncover in hopes of finding a peaceful resolution to their conflict, on his being in Corona and had found her parents on the way and saved their lives. Once in Corona, their Royal Advisor Varian had treated the royal couple, but failed to restore their memory.   
  
Also, they seemed to have lapses every now and then and had to be reminded constantly. But, happily, they seemed to be adjusting to it well enough. Varian kept notes of everything they had been told and anything they didn’t want them to know about but they heard, he just didn’t tell them.   
  
It was a pretty solid setup, and some part of her wondered if their lapses were actually Clementine clearing their memories again to make sure that they didn’t realize something was amiss.  
  
“Are you really okay with it?” Varian asked, drawing her out of her thoughts. “I know that he’s been aggressive the past few times we visited.”  
  
Rapunzel smiled a bit. “Of course, it is. He’s my friend.”  
  
Varian raised an eyebrow. “‘Friend’?”  
  
Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. _What_ did she just say? “Friend”? Eugene was her “friend”? Not “boyfriend”? When did _that_ happen?! She stammered a bit, then looked at her feet before she got up and left the room, Pascal quickly climbing up onto her shoulder from her pocket as she went.  
  
“What did I _say_ , Pascal?” She breathed. “My ‘friend’? Have I actually…when did I completely…it just came out so easily, I didn’t even _think_ about it…”  
  
“Sundrop?”  
  
She turned to see Varian had followed her out. “Varian.” She awkwardly played with a braid again. “I…uhm…it just came out, I didn’t…I don’t know…”  
  
He walked over and gently took her hand. “You don’t have to make excuses for your heart changing, you know. If you didn’t mean to say that, then that means it was your honest feelings on the matter.”  
  
She looked to the side, feeling flustered. “Yeah…”  
  
He gently pulled her closer and she looked at him. It was hard to forget that he was only sixteen when he looked at her like this. She wondered how he would look in just two more years and found herself _really_ wanting to be here for that when it happens. He leaned in and she leaned forward, kissing him again, her arms wrapping around his shoulders as her fingers slipped into his hair again. She hoped he let it grow out longer, she was growing to _really_ like playing with his hair.  
  
He gently pushed her against the wall they were next to and Pascal let out a sound of displeasure before hopping down and skittering off somewhere. At the moment, Rapunzel didn’t care as long as it wasn’t dangerous. She hooked a leg around his and gently tugged his hair, earning a soft moan in response. He slowly broke the kiss and looked at her with half-lidded eyes, his cheeks pink.  
  
“Heh…you…liked that?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
He kissed her again, this time deeper, and his hands slipped under her waistcoat to tug at the back of her shirt as she started to tug his coat down his arms.  
  
“Ahem.”   
  
They both jolted and Varian pulled back, looking flustered. Andrew and Juniper were standing in the hallway, where they’d clearly gone out to find them.  
  
“I’d say ‘get a room’, normally, but right now I’m gonna say ‘isn’t it too _early_ for this’?” Juniper raised an eyebrow.  
  
Andrew let out a low whistle. “ _Wow_ , kid.”  
  
“Rapunzel, when I gave you advice on seduction, I didn’t think you’d put it into practice so _soon_.” Juniper chuckled, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Rapunzel fixed her outfit and then ran off, letting out a soft whine of embarrassment.  
  
“I’ll go get her.” Juniper headed after her, leaving Varian and Andrew behind.  
  
Andrew nudged Varian with a grin. “Nice.”  
  
\--  
  
The rest of the day was full of setting up for Trevor’s stay, making sure he had a good guest room, what to prepare for – Rapunzel helped with that – and passionate kisses before Faith would, politely, remind them that they had work to do, having been trailing behind Rapunzel ever since Juniper put her on the task of making sure Rapunzel didn’t “deflower Varian too early”.  
  
“Do we actually _know_ if he’s bringing the seal or not?” Rapunzel asked as they oversaw the guest room being set up, with all the simple things being replaced with extravagant ones.   
  
“No, just that he wanted to come himself to personally discuss it.” Varian shrugged.  
  
“Oh boy. Well, here’s a bed for the seal, anyway. Just in case.” Rapunzel nodded.  
  
“Seals. There’s two.” He reminded her.  
  
“It’s big enough, and they’re married. They can share. Where is this furniture coming from?” She looked at him.  
  
He shrugged. “I dunno. The Saporians are bringing it in.”  
  
She nodded, then slipped her hand into his. Even through their gloves, they could feel each others’ warmth. He smiled and kissed her cheek and she turned her head to kiss his lips instead.  
  
Faith gently nudged them apart before it could go too far again and they laughed before going on to the next task.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for dinner with Eugene!


	11. 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a tense dinner, Rapunzel has a talk with Eugene.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney
> 
> ((Warning: Implied/Referenced non-con. Also, mention of Lucas. If you're a regular of my works, you know what this means.))

The arrival of dinner, and thus Eugene, reminded Rapunzel that she had to break the bad news to him. She had been so busy flirting with Varian that she hadn’t thought of how she was going to do it, and she smiled awkwardly at him as he was sat down at the table and chained to the chair – just in case. As far as everyone knew, he was hostile and the cold glare he gave Varian only reflected that assumption.  
  
“Good evening, Eugene.” Varian greeted as Juniper went to her chair.  
  
“Varian.” Eugene nodded.  
  
The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife, and Rapunzel shifted in her chair a bit. Eugene turned his attention to her and she awkwardly fidgeted with one of her braids. “Sunshine,” he said softly, and she winced a bit at the nickname.  
  
“Eugene.” She replied, looking up at him.  
  
He looked so relieved to see her, and she felt a bit guilty. Not even fifteen minutes ago, she had been passionately kissing Varian on the same courtyard bench _they’d_ often sat on. This man had given up his criminal life, had thrown away his ancestors’ oaths, for her and she’d betrayed his heart for Varian. Varian, who had been in her mind for months, who had easily bested them in combat, had locked them up. Varian, who had kidnapped her mother before, had attacked the Kingdom, had threatened her life.  
  
Varian, who had such a diabolical plan but was being so gentle about it and treated her so kindly and kissed her so passionately, more passionately than Eugene had _ever_ kissed her, touched her in ways Eugene _never_ had, didn’t treat her like she was something precious that would _break_ if you pushed too far.  
  
Varian, who didn’t treat Rapunzel like she would vanish if he took his eyes off her, like her parents had. She’d rejected Eugene’s proposal the first time because of that reason, because he planned to trap her in a life of routine, of monotony, content to just let life go by and end his adventures. And here was Varian, who was making a difference, who was taking care of her, who was helping her parents remember all the good things and not the things that made things terrible and awkward between them and making more plans every day, always coming up with something new to do.  
  
She still wanted to convince him to give up on the gas and, if she could convince her people to accept that this is how things are and treat Varian better, maybe she had a chance.  
  
Her lips still tingled from his lips pressing against them, his tongue gently stroking them. She tugged on her braid a bit and couldn’t help but think of how Varian reacted when she tugged on his hair, glancing at him. Eugene didn’t react that way, he _protested_ any touching of his hair.  
  
“Rapunzel,” Eugene said, and she looked back at him, “I’ve missed you.”  
  
She smiled. “I missed you too, Eugene.”  
  
King Frederic cleared his throat. “Sweetheart, I know you have some things to discuss but…perhaps, after dinner?”  
  
“Right. Sorry.” Rapunzel nodded, looking at her food.  
  
“It’s alright, Raps.” Andrew said with a smile.  
  
It still stung a little, but she still hadn’t told Andrew not to call her that and, besides, it wasn’t so bad being called it by someone new. She saw Eugene glance at her with concern, but he didn’t say anything.  
  
“Tomorrow, we get to wake up bright and early to meet the Equis boat at the docks.” Varian made a face. “Not looking forward to _this_.”  
  
“Meeting the King of Equis, or waking up early?” Rapunzel asked teasingly.  
  
“Both.” Varian shrugged. Everyone but Eugene laughed.  
  
“Hey, where did Lance go?” Eugene asked.  
  
“The Snuggly Duckling. We’ve been keeping an eye on everyone in your group.” Varian told him. “He’s not fighting us and seems content to just work the bar.”  
  
Eugene sighed. “Yeah. That’s Lance, going with the flow.”  
  
Rapunzel shifted a bit. “Uhm, Varian? Have you checked on Cassandra today?”  
  
“’Checked on’?” Eugene asked.  
  
“She’s still aimlessly wandering.” Varian shrugged. “Yes, Eugene, I can see what she’s doing through the Moonstone she stole.”  
  
“That’s…useful.” Eugene admitted.  
  
“It is.” Varian nodded. “I’m not worrying about Cassandra right now, not with King Trevor on the way, but I have been keeping an eye on her.”  
  
“Wait, why is Trevor coming?” Eugene asked.  
  
“To discuss trading routes.” Rapunzel explained. “There’s been some pirate trouble and we need to adjust our routes, but Equis has most of the water routes locked down.”  
  
“Pirate trouble?” Eugene looked curiously.  
  
“She calls herself ‘Lady Caine’. A formidable woman who took over a prison barge and made it her vessel.” Andrew explained.  
  
Eugene winced. “I thought Max and I _stopped_ her…”  
  
“Apparently not.” Juniper hummed. “She’s been terrorizing the Seven Kingdoms via the water. It's only a matter of time until she comes here.”  
  
“And when she does, we’ll show her the might of New Saporia!” Varian grinned.  
  
“Long Live New Saporia!” The Saporians all cheered.  
  
“Kid, you’re not Saporian.” Eugene frowned.  
  
“Actually, I found out I am. Half. My mother was.” Varian shrugged. “But I only found _that_ out when dad came out of the amber, with the help of my powers.”  
  
“…Great.” Eugene glanced at the King and Queen, who were in a discussion of their own and didn’t seem to be listening. “Where _is_ your dad, anyway?”  
  
“He wanted to live in Old Corona still, he’s working on fixing the place up. We sent over some of our people to help him out.” Andrew explained.  
  
“I offered for him to live here in the castle with me, but he decided not to.” Varian shrugged.  
  
“And he’s _okay_ with your plan?” Eugene raised an eyebrow.  
  
“Yes.” Varian nodded. “He is.”  
  
“Hm. Somehow, I thought he wouldn’t.” Eugene sat back in his seat with a sigh. “Or, _hoped_ he wouldn’t, at least.” He muttered.  
  
\--  
  
After dinner, the King and Queen left for their room while the rest of them went out to the courtyard, Juniper keeping Eugene on a chain – just in case.  
  
“Wow, look at the stars!” Rapunzel said, looking up at the sky. “They’re beautiful.”  
  
“Mm, I could, but the sun is right here.” Varian chuckled. “And it’s _far_ more beautiful.”  
  
Rapunzel blushed and Eugene frowned. “You’re not even _trying_ to hide your flirting, are you?”  
  
“Why _would_ I?” Varian asked.  
  
“Wh—Because you’re flirting with my _girlfriend_?” Eugene raised an eyebrow.  
  
“Am I?” Varian asked, looking at Rapunzel.  
  
“Uhm...” Rapunzel glanced away awkwardly.  
  
“Rapunzel?” Eugene frowned.  
  
“Rapunzel, you can’t keep putting it off.” Andrew reminded her gently.  
  
“I know.” Rapunzel sighed, looking at her feet.  
  
“Putting _what_ off?” Eugene frowned.  
  
Varian knelt down to pick up Ruddiger, who had scampered over with Pascal on his back. “Do you want to tell him, or should I?” He asked.  
  
“No, I…I can do it. Can you give us a bit?” She asked, looking at all of them.  
  
Varian nodded. “We’ll be nearby. Juniper, you too.”  
  
“Yell if he does anything risky.” Juniper walked off with the rest of them.  
  
Eugene watched them go, then looked at Rapunzel. “…Sunshine?”  
  
Rapunzel fidgeted with one of her braids, looking over at Varian as he played with Ruddiger and Pascal climbed onto Juniper’s shoulder and blended in with her red shirt. “Eugene…uhm…” She sighed. “There’s… _no_ easy way to say this.” She looked back at him. “I’ve…fallen for someone else. Pretty…passionately.” She blushed a bit.  
  
“…Oh.” He pursed his lips. “Varian?”  
  
She nodded. “Eugene, I—”  
  
He held out a hand. “Save it. I should’ve figured it would end up this way from the moment you said that he helped you out of that weird dream world. I thought that things were _good_ between us, but then when you didn’t attack him right away after he trapped me in goo…and you’ve been spending so much _time_ together. I guess I should’ve given up hope when you decided to match his outfit.” He looked away. “You’re no longer the girl from the tower that I met by chance and fell in love with. From what I understand, you’re trying to pretend you never _went_ to the tower. You’ve _completely_ given in to what he wants.”  
  
“What we _both_ want. Things were always strained between me and my father because of what happened to me, but now I can freely talk with them without any concern for being locked up if I upset my father.” Rapunzel walked towards him. “Eugene—”  
  
“Stop.”  
  
“—I hope we can still be friends.” She smiled softly.  
  
He closed his eyes, pursing his lips. “…You can tell Varian not to worry about me anymore. I’m going back to the Dark Kingdom, to _my_ father. May as well get to know him, since I have no reason to be _here_ anymore. I only did all of this for you, Sunshine. But, since I’ve been _replaced_ , I may as well go.”  
  
“You don’t _have_ to.” She walked up to him and took his hands in her gloved ones. “Eugene—”  
  
He jerked his hand back. “I need _time_ , Sun— _Princess Rapunzel_. So, if you can all give me the freedom to _pack_ and then a balloon to go back to my _father_ , that would be _great_.”  
  
Rapunzel sighed. “I’ll…talk to Varian.” She stepped back a bit. “I’m sorry.”  
  
“So am I.” Eugene said softly.  
  
Rapunzel walked over to Varian. “Varian?”  
  
“Hey, Sundrop.” He greeted, balancing Ruddiger on his back before reaching back to hold him in his arms as he straightened up.  
  
“Eugene wants to use one of the balloons to go back to the Dark Kingdom.” She said, clasping her hands in front of her chest. “And he needs to pack his things.”  
  
Varian nodded. “We can do that. Can he wait until King Trevor has left, or would he prefer to leave before?”  
  
“Before would be great.” Eugene said, walking over to join them with a forced smile. “King Trevor and I have a _strained_ relationship; I might ruin things for you. So, I’d like to leave as soon as tonight.”  
  
Varian nodded. “Alright. Juniper, can you take him to get ready?”  
  
Juniper nodded and walked over to unlock the chain. “Let’s get going, then.”  
  
“Yeah.” Eugene followed her away.  
  
“Thank you.” Rapunzel said, gently kissing Varian’s cheek.  
  
He smiled. “You gonna be okay?”  
  
She nodded. “I think so.”  
  
Or, she _hoped_ so, at least.  
  
He gently cupped her cheek and kissed her. “Good.”  
  
\--  
  
They saw Eugene off together, and he didn’t look either of them in the eye. “If you see Lance, tell him where I’ll be.” He said as he finished loading up the balloon. “I’ll be around if he wants to visit.”  
  
“Have a safe flight.” Varian nodded.  
  
“Say hi to your dad.” Rapunzel said softly. “Oh, and Adira and Hector, too.”  
  
“Yeah.” He finished loading up his belongings and sighed. “I won’t tell them about you, kid. Not sure how they’d react if they knew. Might freak out.”  
  
Varian nodded. “Okay, thanks.”  
  
He smiled wryly, then turned to them, hesitating, before he held out a hand. “I hope you find another way.”  
  
Varian took his hand and shook it. “Trust me, if the people were willing to forgive, I wouldn’t do this.”  
  
Eugene sighed and released his hand. “Good luck with Cass.” He started up the balloon and it lifted into the air. “See you around.”  
  
Rapunzel waved as he disappeared into the sky, then sighed and lowered it. “Well…that’s that.”  
  
“We should get some rest.” Varian nodded. “There’s Trevor coming in the morning.”  
  
“Oh, right.” She made a displeasured face and he laughed.  
  
“Come on, I’ll walk you to your room.” He took her hand in his.  
  
“Would it be too much to ask you to stay the night?” Rapunzel asked.  
  
“Do you think that’s a good idea?” He raised an eyebrow.  
  
Rapunzel looked thoughtful. “We can give it a shot?”  
  
Varian sighed and squeezed her hand. “Okay.” He smiled.  
  
They headed up to her room and walked in together. Varian sat on the balcony while Faith got Rapunzel ready, his gaze turned towards the sky. He shrugged off his coat and draped it over his lap, still not looking towards the room.  
  
He felt arms around his shoulders and looked up for Rapunzel to capture his lips with hers before she sat in his lap, dressed in her blue nightgown and her hair loose and drifting in the wind. With Eugene out of the picture, she could do this completely guilt-free and she was eager to do so.  
  
“You—are making—mm—Faith’s job— _very_ hard.” He said between kisses, chuckling.  
  
“So, I did some research,” she said, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, “apparently, boys can marry at 16. So, if you _wanted_ to…” She played with his hair a bit.  
  
“Something tells me that you’re not thinking of _marriage._ ” He raised an eyebrow.  
  
“Can you _blame_ me? Ever since I first saw you in this outfit, I’ve been wanting it off.” She admitted, blushing. “Even before I knew what sex _was_ , really.”  
  
“Faith?” Varian looked over at her.  
  
“I will leave, if you would like.” She said, putting Rapunzel’s dirty clothes in a hamper. “Oh, wait, was that a cry for help?” She turned to them.  
  
“I…I don’t know.” He admitted.  
  
“I’ll leave if you want me to.” She said, straightening up.  
  
Rapunzel grabbed one of Varian’s hands and eased off the glove before kissing his palm. “It’s up to you.” She said, patting her eyelids at him.  
  
“ _Wow_ , what did Juniper _teach_ you?” He said, growing flustered.  
  
“Well, her and the books she gave me were _very_ informative…but I’ve never actually _practiced_ any of it, obviously.” She removed his other glove and dropped them on the balcony floor.  
  
“ _Okay_ , uhm…Rapunzel.” He gently eased her off and scooped up the gloves as he got up. “I think we should wait for a time that we _don’t_ have to wake up _early_ the next morning, and _possibly_ explore the _marriage_ angle before we, uh, go to the bed.” He pulled his coat back on.  
  
She hummed and got up to walk over and kiss him. “Okay.” She ran her fingers through his hair and gave a light tug, earning a moan for her efforts. “But if you change your mind…”  
  
“I’m going to scream at Juniper.” He said, pulling his gloves on nervously. “We’ll, uh…I’ll see you tomorrow, Princess.” He headed for the door.  
  
“Too much?” Rapunzel looked at Faith, who nodded. She walked over and caught him before he left. “Wait.”  
  
He turned to her. “Yes?”  
  
She smiled and gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. “Sorry.”  
  
He smiled softly and she melted a bit inside. “Good night.”  
  
“Good night.” She stepped back and he opened the door to go out.  
  
She sighed and walked over to sit on her bed, moving her finger over her lips thoughtfully.  
  
\--  
  
“So…it was _not_ a good idea.” Andrew snickered as Varian laid his head on the arm of his chair. He had been reading in the library when Varian came in, looking flustered, and ranted about what had happened after they saw Eugene off.  
  
“What did Juniper _teach_ her, exactly?” He groaned.  
  
“Well, let’s just say that love is a little more… _free_ in Saporia.” Andrew set his book down. “Which is how Juniper and I are half-siblings with our father not married to _either_ of our mothers.”  
  
“Wow.” Varian breathed. “I… _wow_.”  
  
Andrew chuckled and got up. “Well, come on. You look like you could use something cold to drink and I wouldn’t mind a midnight snack.”  
  
“My cheeks feel like they’re on fire.” Varian said, getting up and following him out. “I’m going to look into that ‘boys can get married at sixteen’ claim. I did _not_ expect her to be so…uhm… _eager_.”  
  
Andrew laughed. “She’s right, actually. Boys _can_ get married at sixteen, if they are of noble class. As the son of a Mayor and also a royal advisor, you count.”  
  
“Wow.” He ran a hand through his bangs. “Okay…well, it _might_ be a bit soon to be talking about hearing wedding bells.”  
  
“Yeah, she should give you six months.” Andrew chuckled. “That’s how long Eugene gave her before _he_ proposed.”  
  
Varian nodded. “I _do_ feel a bit bad. But, she _did_ start the kissing first, so not _too_ bad.”  
  
Andrew laughed. “Yeah, she’s…uhm…well, he didn’t hold her interest very well. Not when there was someone more interesting to look at. Eugene is kind of…bland.” Andrew shrugged. “You and I, we’re a whole other flavor.”  
  
Varian chuckled. “’Flavor’, huh. Wow.”  
  
“Yep.” Andrew hummed.  
  
“So…what about you? Think you’ll ever try to get back with Cassandra?” Varian asked, looking up at him.  
  
“Hm…I dunno. I mean, we were _great_ together, but I don’t know if she _really_ feels that way about me or if her nearly kissing me was an _act_.” Andrew sighed. “She’s a hard one to figure out.”  
  
“Yeah, _tell_ me about it.” Varian nodded.  
  
“Besides, I don’t know if she’d _want_ to be with me. I mean, I can’t…do _that_ anymore.” Andrew said, pursing his lips grimly.  
  
Varian looked down. “Sorry.”  
  
“It’s not your fault, kid. If I had the choice, I’d endure it all again to keep you from suffering the same fate.” Andrew smiled at him. “You were the only good thing in that place. I couldn’t let them destroy you.”  
  
Varian smiled and hugged him. “I was lucky to have you for a cellmate.”  
  
“Me too.” Andrew rubbed his head. “You made life down there a lot easier.”  
  
Ruddiger came up to them and nuzzled Varian’s legs. Varian smiled and looked down at him. “Ruddiger helped, too. Right?”  
  
“Yeah, but he didn’t seem to like me after we actually started going through with our plans.” Andrew smirked.  
  
Varian picked up Ruddiger and held his paw, swiping it at Andrew. “’You’re a bad influence’.” He said, making his voice sound different. “’You let Varian do bad things again. Shame on you’.”  
  
“Shame on me.” Andrew laughed.  
  
Ruddiger wriggled out of Varian’s grip and then climbed up to settle around his shoulders, batting at him with his tail in annoyance, earning laughter from both of them.  
  
Andrew sighed and looked forward, smiling a bit. “We’ve come a long way since then. I’ll heal, in time, but right now I don’t want to be with anyone. And I don’t expect Cassandra to wait for me to recover well enough to be able to….to give her a child, if she wants one. Or even just company in her bed.”  
  
Varian gently took his hand. “Well, we don’t know until she comes back.”  
  
“Let’s hope she waits until _after_ King Trevor is here and gone.” Andrew smirked.  
  
Varian nodded, sighing. “I can feel the Moonstone reaching for me. It sensed me through Rapunzel before, and every time I use it to spy on Cassandra, it keeps trying to reach me.”  
  
“Well, it’s _yours_ , isn’t it?” Andrew hummed.  
  
“Yeah, suppose so.” Varian shrugged, slipping his hands into his pockets.  
  
They reached the kitchen and Varian sat down while a chef brought over a snack for both of them and some cold milk, which he eagerly drank. Andrew smiled and picked up his cupcake, taking a bite. “So, are you thoroughly distracted from the Princess’s advances?” He asked teasingly.  
  
“Well, I _was_ , until you had to bring it _up_.” Varian lightly shoved him and Andrew laughed. “Seriously… _why_ did Juniper have to tell her about that?”  
  
“Oh, probably just to see what she’d do with the information. Raps is a little bit unstable, isn’t she?” Andrew remarked.  
  
“A little bit.” Varian nodded. “I blame the tower.”  
  
“Definitely the tower.” Andrew nodded.  
  
“Where’s Juniper, anyway? I need to tell her off.” Varian looked at Andrew.  
  
“You could use your Communication Mirror, you know.” Andrew smirked.  
  
“I _could_ , but I want to tell her to her face.” Varian said, then paused. “On second thought…the mirror might be better.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small mirror, which he held in his hand as he rested it on the table. “Juniper.”  
  
The mirror glowed and then flashed as Juniper’s image appeared in it. “Hey, kid. Not asleep yet? I heard you were going to the Princess’ room for a ‘sleepover’.”  
  
“Uh, yeah, no, that got cut off when she decided to try to jump my bones.” Varian said, glancing away with a flustered expression. Juniper laughed and he looked back at her. “I’m serious. She was like ‘I found out boys can get married at 16. So, if you wanted to….’ and she was _clearly_ not thinking of marriage.”  
  
“Clearly.” Juniper laughed. “You’re the one that encouraged it by making out with her in the hallway, you know. I just gave her the information and _tried_ to keep it from happening by putting Faith in as a roadblock. Let me guess, didn’t work?”  
  
“She said that if I wanted her to, she’d leave.” Varian said, still blushing. “But you still started this by telling her that stuff at all. I didn’t expect her to try to jump my bones as soon as Eugene left, yeesh!”  
  
Juniper laughed again. “You’re welcome! I gotta sleep now and so do you, so I’ll talk to you later, scamp. Bye!” The mirror went dark.  
  
“Your sister is terrible.” Varian said, putting his mirror again.  
  
“You love her, though.” Andrew snickered.  
  
“Meh.” Varian shrugged, but smiled a bit. “Yeah. She’s great, even if she does unnecessary stuff sometimes.”  
  
“Heh, yeah.” Andrew nodded. “She means well, though.”  
  
Varian reached up to touch his hair. “…Why do I react that way when my hair gets pulled?”  
  
“No idea.” Andrew shrugged. “Some people like it. Me, I hate it.” He scowled. “Not that those _creeps_ cared.”  
  
Varian nudged him. “Hey, it’s okay. They’re all dead and gone now.”  
  
“Not all of them.” Andrew pursed his lips. “ _Lucas_ wasn’t among the dead. He was away when Juniper came in to rescue us.”  
  
Varian tensed. “…Yeah. We need to keep an eye out for him.” He took off his glove. “When I next see him…I’m going to kill him.”  
  
Andrew smirked. “It’s what he deserves.”  
  
Varian nodded and pulled his glove back on. “The things he did to me…to you…” He clenched his fists. “That _disgusting sadist_.”  
  
“Hey.” Andrew nudged Varian’s cupcake towards him. “Happy thoughts. Trade routes.”  
  
Varian chuckled. “Maybe we should call in some of the others and catch the pirates with our airships.”  
  
“Mm, _that’s_ sure to warm people up to us.” Andrew nodded. “Lady Caine is a lovely woman, at least what I saw of her when I was being hauled past her cell.”  
  
“It’s still bullshit that they put you in there at all.” Varian scowled.  
  
“Hey, don’t use that kind of language.” Andrew frowned. “You’ve been spending _way_ too much time with Juniper.”  
  
Varian shrugged. “Meh.”  
  
“Don’t you ‘meh’ me.” Andrew nudged him.  
  
Varian laughed and Andrew smiled at him fondly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow, we meet with Trevor!
> 
> ((A/N: This is all I have written up to now because I need to learn how to write Trevor, so considering the next episode of "Destined Couple" features the guy, I will probably update this after I finish with that episode's chapters. Wish me luck! (I hate him.) 
> 
> Also, I did actually look up marriage ages in the 1600s, when Tangled is supposed to take place, so I'm not just writing out of my ass. The standard ages of marriage back then were 16-21, because lifespans were so much shorter than today, and men could marry sooner than women.))


	12. 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King Trevor arrives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney
> 
> ((A/N: Heads up, at the end of this chapter Varian and Rapunzel escalate their relationship just a biiiit further. Spicy moments ahead.))

The next day, Rapunzel stood with Varian and the Saporians as they watched the boat from Equis dock at their port. The Saporians, she noted, had all changed into nicer clothes of black, red and white and she wondered why she and Varian hadn’t also changed. She supposed this _was_ Varian’s nicer clothes, though. Varian had pinned his bangs out of his face and Rapunzel couldn’t help but want to kiss him again but kept herself calm.  
  
The boat finished docking and then the ramp lowered before King Trevor walked down it with an entourage of guards accompanying him.   
  
“King Trevor.” Andrew greeted as they all bowed or curtseyed. “Welcome to Corona.”  
  
“Hm, yes, I see it’s just as bland as the _last_ time I came to this wretched place.” He waved his hand dismissively. “You may rise. I expected to see the advisor, Nigel, here.”  
  
“I am afraid, Your Majesty, Nigel has retired. Varian here is his replacement.” Andrew said calmly, gesturing to Varian.  
  
“Hm.” He leaned in to look art Varian. “You’re awfully young to be an advisor, aren’t you?”  
  
“I assure you, Your Majesty,” Varian smiled, “I am quite up to the task.”  
  
“Hm. I shall see it for myself during my stay.” He straightened up. “Princess Rapunzel.” He narrowed his eyes at her.  
  
“King Trevor.” She politely curtseyed again.  
  
“I am surprised your felonious boyfriend is not also here.” He looked around, like Eugene was hiding from him.  
  
“Oh, he’s…uhm…I’m not with him anymore, Your Majesty.” She said, moving a hand up to fidget with one of her braids before she dropped it back down to clasp in front of her. “I’m with someone else now.”  
  
“Hm.” He stepped back and then turned his attention to the Saporians. “Ah, fair Juniper.” He reached out a hand and she held out hers for him to take it and kiss her hand. “You are just as lovely as the last time I saw you. Did you locate your lost brother?”  
  
“Yes, actually.” Andrew smiled. “I’m her brother.”  
  
“Oh!” He looked at him. “I didn’t…I suppose there is a family resemblance.” He nodded.  
  
“If you will come with us, Your Majesty, we have prepared a guest room for you. Did you bring your Trevor Jr. with you?” Varian asked politely.  
  
“Ah, alas, I did not. His Lucille is pregnant with pups and I could not take them traveling during such a time.” He adjusted his mustache. “Well, lead the way, then. And how is my _dear_ Frederic doing?”  
  
“Actually, your Majesty, we need to discuss that with you.” Varian said as they all started to walk back to the castle with him and his entourage. “A few months ago, Their Majesties were out on an outing on the sea and encountered sea monsters. Their ship was badly damaged and they were terribly wounded. If Juniper and the others hadn’t found them on the way to Corona, they would have surely perished.”  
  
“What a tragedy.” King Trevor said empathically.  
  
“As a result of the attack, they lost their memories. I have been doing my best to help them remember, but it is slow going. As such, I ask that you not make reference to anything that they may not remember.” Varian went on.  
  
“How bad is it?” King Trevor asked.  
  
“They did not even remember being married when they woke up, or that they have a daughter. They remember now, of course, but that is decades of memories lost. I have been helping them restore their lost relationship, and I think I’ve made good progress.”  
  
“May I ask, advisor, how old _are_ you?” King Trevor asked.  
  
“I am sixteen years old.” Varian replied. “But I am perfectly capable at doing my job, Your Majesty.”  
  
“Oh, I was not implying you were not. I was simply curious.” He smiled slyly. “So, Princess Rapunzel, may I ask who your heart has decided to turn to instead of the thief?”  
  
“Oh, uhm…” Rapunzel fidgeted with one of her braids. “Varian, actually.”  
  
“Hm.” King Trevor looked at him. “Well, he seems to be a fine, upstanding youth, as far as I can tell. I’m sure your parents are _proud_.”  
  
“They are.” Varian and Rapunzel said in unison.  
  
King Trevor hummed a bit.  
  
\--  
  
“As you can see, we _did_ try to anticipate everything, including your seals. However, if anything is lacking, please let us know.” Varian said as King Trevor looked around his room. “When you are ready, Your Majesty, we will take you to see the King and Queen.”  
  
“Ahh, yes.” King Trevor turned to him. “I would like to see them now, then.”  
  
“Of course.” Varian bowed and then stepped out of the room so he could escort King Trevor.  
  
“May I ask, Princess, why you are wearing the colors of Saporia?” King Trevor asked as they walked.  
  
“I…wanted to match Varian.” She admitted, blushing. “I thought his outfit was cool and wanted my own version.”  
  
“Well, it _is_ rather nice on you. I was simply curious.” He walked on.  
  
Rapunzel fidgeted with her braid again, feeling nervous. Varian took her hand in his and smiled reassuringly. “He’s being…unusually _nice_.” She whispered to him.  
  
“Don’t worry, we won’t let him do anything.” He assured her.  
  
She eyed the man behind them warily and then kissed his cheek. “Okay. I trust you.”  
  
He smiled and gently squeezed her hand.  
  
\--  
  
They stepped into the lounge, King Trevor taking the lead with a flourish. “Oh, Frederic, say it isn’t so!” He moved to his side and Frederic shifted a bit uncomfortably. “I heard you were attacked by sea monsters! _Sea monsters_! Oh, and here _I_ am worrying about _pirates_!” He wrapped his arms around him. “Poor, fragile Frederic! I heard they robbed you of your memories! Decades lost! Decades!”  
  
“Er, yes, but Varian and Rapunzel are helping me remember the important things.” King Frederic said, nudging him off with a helpless expression.  
  
“Well, perhaps I can also assist, while I am here!” He suggested. “After all, we have decades of memories to restore!” He looked at Arianna with a fond smile. “The day you chose him, your wedding day, the day he convinced his father to stop hunting the Saporians at his friend’s desperate, lovestruck behest! Ah, so many memories!”  
  
“Those sound like pleasant memories to try to recall.” Arianna said with a smile.  
  
“Yes, surely you _must_ remember Donella!” Trevor urged.  
  
Rapunzel’s brow furrowed and Varian tensed up. “Who’s Donella?” She asked.  
  
“Ah, you do not know her? I suppose it is only understandable, she has not returned to Corona in thirteen years, after all.” King Trevor turned back to look at them. “I recall your father was rather fond of her.”  
  
“I admired her intimidating strength, but I was not _fond_ of her.” King Frederic protested. “And why did she leave?”  
  
Varian sighed. “Because she took my mother away on a trip and came back alone. My father sent her away, told her to never return.”  
  
King Trevor turned to him so fast he must’ve gotten whiplash from it. “You are Ulla’s boy?! Well!” He walked over and cupped Varian’s chin in his hand. “Looking at you now, I can see the family resemblance! Especially the eyes. A _fine_ woman, your mother. But her heart was only for your father.” He patted Varian’s cheek and then walked back over to the King and Queen.  
  
Varian rubbed at his cheek. “I wasn’t aware he knew them.” He mumbled.  
  
“Ah, the memories! Tell me, has your egg collection grown, Frederic? Do you know?” King Trevor asked. “And, fair Arianna, is your lovely sister aware of your condition?”  
  
“I, uh, no…I haven’t heard from her and I don’t know where she is.” Queen Arianna said awkwardly.  
  
“Your Majesty.” Varian walked forward. “You’re overwhelming them, please.”  
  
“Oh, of course.” King Trevor patted Frederic’s head and then straightened up. “Well, it’s been some time since I was in this Kingdom. How about a tour?”  
  
“As you desire, Your Majesty.” Varian said, gesturing to the door. He walked out and Varian went with him, Rapunzel staying behind.  
  
“Sorry about that, mom, dad. We didn’t know he’d be so…” Rapunzel struggled for a nice word.  
  
“Ah, this is normal for him.” King Trevor assured her. “But, now that he brings it up, I haven’t shown you my egg collection, have I?”  
  
Queen Arianna stood up and smoothed out her dress. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to go join them on the tour. I haven’t been out of the castle in some time.”  
  
“Oh, right.” Rapunzel reached into her pocket and pulled out her Communication Mirror. “Varian,” she said, and it started to glow, “my mother wants to join you two for the tour.”  
  
“Alright, we’ll come back and she can join us. What about your father?” Varian asked.  
  
“He wants to show me his egg collection.” Rapunzel smiled a bit.  
  
“I’m sure that’ll be fun. We’re heading back now, see you soon.”  
  
Rapunzel blew a kiss at the mirror and then it went dark. She heard her mother giggling and blushed a bit, putting it in her pocket. “U-Uhm, he’s on his way.”  
  
“I heard, dear.” She giggled again.  
  
“We’re just…so happy you two are happy together. Varian has been so good to us, and to know he's taking care of our daughter is such a relief.” King Frederic explained with a fond smile.  
  
“Uhm, yeah.” She fidgeted with one hf braids, blushing. “Though, I think I might be a bit of a handful for him. I mean, last night, I…” She blushed more and then buried her face in her hands. “Wow, I really did that…”  
  
“What did you do?” Queen Arianna asked.  
  
“I…I asked him to spend the night, you know, just to be close…and then things kind of escalated and he got flustered and left. But, I think he’s forgiven me. I mean, he kissed me this morning on the way to breakfast.” She started to play with one of her braids again.  
  
“I think he has.” Queen Arianna agreed. “But, perhaps don’t rush into giving me grandchildren while I’m still getting to know my daughter?”  
  
Rapunzel stammered, flustered, and then was saved from the conversation by the sound of the other two coming back.  
  
“Your Majesty, I’ve been told you wanted to join us?” Varian asked pleasantly.  
  
“Yes, I am on my way now.” Queen Arianna got up and walked over to join them. Varian smiled fondly at Rapunzel before they headed off together, leaving her with her father.  
  
Rapunzel let out a soft sigh. “You never mentioned the egg collection before.” She said, looking at him.  
  
“Well, I…not many people want to see it.” He admitted.  
  
“Did, uh…did you show it to Donella?” Rapunzel asked awkwardly.  
  
“Honestly…it’s still foggy.” He admitted, getting up. “I remember her, but I also don’t. Trevor helped me remember what little I do. I don’t think she ever came to the castle…or, _did_ she?” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Anyways, eggs!” He headed off and Rapunzel followed.  
  
\--

  
Varian led King Trevor and Queen Arianna through town, glancing around as they walked, silently threatening any of the townsfolk to keep quiet _or else_. They obeyed, of course. What else could they do? Their Princess, their _savior_ was on his side, they had no one to lead them against the Saporians and Varian. They should be counting themselves _lucky_ that they weren’t in the mines right now, really. But, the King would’ve been expecting a full kingdom, so a full kingdom he shall have.  
  
Queen Arianna waved to her subjects cheerfully while King Trevor walked alongside her as if he belonged there. Varian walked ahead of them, but kept an eye on them even as he talked about the city.  
  
“And this is Monty’s Sweet Shoppe, one of the most popular shops in town.” He said, stopping outside it. “Unfortunately, Monty went missing some time ago and we’ve been searching for him. I suspect that he’s left because of me. He doesn’t approve of me, because of my age, thinks it’s…” he made a face, “untraditional.”  
  
“Clearly, he’s behind the times.” King Trevor wrinkled his mustache. “After all, is it not the youth that will bring us to the future? If you are intelligent enough and mature enough to take on the role, which you seem to be, why would it be a problem for you to do so?”  
  
“From what I understand, he doesn’t approve of Princess Rapunzel’s lack of footwear, either.” Varian shrugged. “He’s rooted in tradition.”  
  
“If I cared about what others thought, would I have my Trevor Jr.? No. My father disapproved of my fascination with seals and told me to get a _sensible_ pet, like a bird! Bah. No, he did not appreciate the greatness of seals.” King Trevor sniffed condescendingly. “No, he didn’t appreciate a _lot_ about me. ‘Be serious, Trevor’, he said. ‘No woman would ever want a man that is as obsessed with _pranks_ as you are!”  
  
“My father disapproved of my alchemy growing up.” Varian nodded. “Actually…he still does, he just actually respects me now because of my new position.”  
  
“Everyone has to have a hobby. Isn’t that right, Arianna?” He looked at her with a smile.  
  
“Yes, I’d love to go adventuring, but I’ve just been so busy.” Queen Arianna sighed. “But, wow, who knew I’d already been on the biggest adventure and didn’t remember it? Parenthood…wow.” She brought a hand to her cheek. “That means that Frederic and I…”  
  
“It’s a lot to think about.” King Trevor patted her shoulders comfortingly. “Losing your memories; such a tragedy.”  
  
“What’s important isn’t what I’ve forgotten, but what I make of my life now. From the way that Rapunzel looks at us sometimes…I wonder if perhaps we weren’t good parents.” She said, biting her lip.  
  
“You were a wonderful mother, Your Majesty.” Varian assured her. “Your husband, though…well, I don’t think he was ready to be a father. But, I’m sure he’ll do better from now. He was very strict with her, and made her cry a lot.”  
  
“Oh dear.” Queen Arianna said softly. “Well, that’s not such a surprise, considering his father…”  
  
Varian tilted his head to the side a bit. “The previous king? What was he like?”  
  
She got a faraway look in her eyes and closed them. “He was…cold. Detached. Cruel. Whenever I saw him, he would always find an excuse to be anywhere else. He treated his son harshly, and I suppose Frederic found solace in his eggs as a result. I don’t remember beyond my young adult years,” she admitted, “but I suppose he must have passed away if Frederic is the King now. And that I chose him. I wonder what the deciding moment was.”  
  
King Trevor sighed. “He took you on a grand adventure to find rare phoenix eggs…and gave up on them to save your life.”  
  
She brought a hand to her chest. “Oh, Frederic.”  
  
“Yes. I knew when you returned with him that I’d lost. The love in your eyes as he held you so tenderly and swore over and over to never let you go, to never let you be taken from him again, I knew I had no chance and respectfully bowed out.” King Trevor sighed. “Ah, but if only that had not happened…well, there’s no changing the past, after all. You have your loving daughter to think about, after all.”  
  
“Yes.” She nodded. “And I have heard that you have eyes for the lovely Princess Juniper.”  
  
“Ah, yes.” He sighed fondly. “However, she rebukes my affections. I wonder if, perhaps, you could help me with that?” He looked at Varian. “You seem close with the Saporians. Perhaps you could assist me with my quest for her affections?”  
  
Varian looked thoughtful. “I can talk to her about it.”  
  
“It would be a _tremendous_ good, my dear boy.” He smiled brightly. “And, of course, I will do everything I can to assist in Saporia’s restoration. After all, what are neighbors for but to lend a good construction crew?”  
  
“I think that would go a long way towards gaining her affections.” Varian nodded with a smile. “But, for now, let’s focus on the most troubling matter at hand. The trade routes being disrupted by Lady Caine and her pirates.”  
  
“Yes, yes. As I am aware, Corona does not have much of a naval force. _I_ , however, may be able to supply assist with my _own_ navy.” He suggested proudly.  
  
“We planned to take care of the problem with airships, but I’m sure you can bring it up during the meeting today.” Varian said pleasantly. “Our concern is with securing a new trade route, because we don’t yet know what we’re dealing with out there and need to look into it, but trade must go on.”  
  
“Oh, yes, of course.” He nodded. “We will discuss it in full later. You _will_ speak to Princess Juniper about me, though, won’t you?”  
  
“Of course.” Varian assured him. “Why don’t we head back now?”  
  
“Yes, I believe I have seen enough.” Queen Arianna nodded.  
  
“Lead the way, then.” King Trevor gestured to Varian. He nodded and turned back, leading the royals back to the castle.  
  
\--  
  
“You told him _what_?!” Juniper hissed.  
  
Varian sighed. He’d expected this reaction, which is why he waited until he’d dropped King Trevor off at his room for “a little nap”, which he assisted him with by a drugged soothing tea, before he went to go find the Saporian royal siblings.  
  
“I said that I would _talk_ to you. He’s offering to assist with helping Saporia rebuild, which would solidify him as an ally, and he seems to be very interested in you and without a proper heir his Kingdom will fall into anarchy.” Varian reasoned, while Juniper glared down at him.  
  
“He’s got a point.” Andrew remarked. “Equis is at risk of falling to ruin if he doesn’t find someone willing to put up with him and it’s either you or the lovely Queen Arianna and she’s not an option.”  
  
“How about we just find him someone that, you know, actually _likes him_?” Juniper hissed. “Why _me_? Why would you _tell_ him that?!”  
  
“I just said I would _talk_ to you, don’t get mad at _me_.” Varian frowned. “I couldn’t say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on your behalf anyway, you’re your own person!”  
  
She sighed heavily. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I just…ugh.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t want to _upset_ him by turning him down, but…”  
  
“Just let him court you. In the meantime, I can scout around for anyone that might suit his fancy.” Andrew suggested.   
  
“If nothing else, we can introduce him to someone and use a love spell on them to make sure they get together.” Clementine suggested. “You know, for the good of the Kingdom of Equis and all that.”  
  
“A love—that’s a _thing_?!” Varian looked at her in disbelief. She nodded with a grin. “…Magic is scary.”  
  
Andrew laughed. “It can be, yeah. Anyways, for now we’ll just agree to let him court you. He still has to actually _earn_ your affections, but a courting will make things go smoothly between our people and his. And he _did_ help you before. You owe him at least _some_ affection, Juni.”  
  
She groaned. “…Fine. Fine. I will let him _court_ me. Even if I find the whole practice archaic and gross.”  
  
Andrew laughed again.  
  
\--  
  
Rapunzel didn’t know that her father had an egg collection, and she never even less that he had categorized and sorted them all and kept them in a large room. “So, these are all…different kind of eggs?” She asked as she looked over the book.  
  
“Yes! I’m very proud of my collection.” He said with a smile. “Not a single one is the same! Oh, and here’s a book on different kinds of eggs in the world! I would _love_ to get my hands on a dragon egg, or a sea-serpent egg. Look at this!” He got out a book and showed it to her. “Beautiful, aren’t they?”  
  
“The dragon egg looks like a little ball!” Rapunzel said in awe.  
  
“But inside is a majestic creature.” He said in awe. “Wouldn’t it be amazing to hold a real dragon egg, to feel that warmth before it hatched? And to see a baby dragon…ohh…” He swooned a bit.  
  
She smiled fondly. “Yeah, that sounds really great.”  
  
She heard a knock at the door and looked over to see Varian had come to find them. “Having fun?” He asked.  
  
“He was just showing me all his different kinds of eggs. Look, he has a book and everything!” She gestured to it.  
  
“That’s great, Your Majesty. I was just checking in to see if you needed anything before I went to my lab. King Trevor decided to take a nap after our walk and I have some work to do.” Varian shrugged with a smile.  
  
“Oh, of course! Go on, we’ll find you later.” King Frederic smiled.  
  
Rapunzel shifted a bit. “Uhm, dad? Do you mind I go and help him?”  
  
“Of course not.” He put the book away. “I should go catch up with Arianna and see what she saw out in the city!” He turned to them.  
  
“Great.” Rapunzel smiled. “I mean, seeing your passion project here is… _amazing_ , and I honestly wish you’d showed me it before, but—”  
  
“I wasn’t a good father, was I?” He smiled sadly.  
  
She blinked in surprise. “No, no, you were—”  
  
“I’ve seen the expressions you have sometimes. You always look like I’m going to refuse your request every time you have one, like you’re preparing to be scolded. I know, because I used to give my father the same expression.” King Frederic sighed. “It…feels bitter that I became just like him. Was I at least a better King?”  
  
Varian sighed. “Well…you had…some lacking qualities.” He admitted.  
  
“Well, with your help, I hope that the Kingdom can flourish. I swear to _never_ be as cruel a King as my father was, from this day on.” King Frederic declared.  
  
“You’ve already been doing so much better than before, Your Majesty.” Varian assured him.  
  
“Perhaps this memory loss was exactly what I needed to…get my head on straight.” King Frederic sighed. “Well, don’t let me keep you! You two go have fun, but not _too_ much!” He chuckled.  
  
“Daaaad!” She blushed and lightly shoved him and he laughed.  
  
“Come on, Rapunzel.” Varian chuckled. “Let’s head out.”  
  
“Save it for the wedding bed!” King Frederic called after them.  
  
Rapunzel left with Varian, her red-faced and Varian laughing. Once down the hall a bit, though, they both calmed down.   
  
“He’s really… _so_ much better. I...I _wish_ I knew this side of him before. The fun side, the…the closest I ever came to seeing this is when he decided to finally prank King Trevor in retaliation of all of his pranks. He hid his…fun-loving side, the side that collects eggs and laughs without any restraint, from me. And he was…” She wrapped her arms around himself. “He’s right. That ‘serpent attack’ was just what he needed.”  
  
Varian gently wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her cheek. “From now on, you’ll get to meet your parents as their true selves, no longer hiding behind fear of losing you again.”  
  
“Thank you.” She turned her head and kissed him sweetly, then turned him fully and kissed him again and again. “Thank you, thank you, _thank you_ for this second chance for _all_ of us.”  
  
He smiled fondly and gently stroked her cheek. “Everyone wants a chance to reset their lives to before bad things happen, right? They’re lucky.”  
  
She sighed softly. “Varian…” She gently took his hand and held it against her cheek. “Is this…helping you heal?”  
  
“I’ll always have the nightmares and the memories, I can’t _afford_ to forget, but it’s helping, yeah.” Varian nodded. “Having you here, with me, is helping too.”  
  
She kissed him again. “Varian…what if I could convince the people to treat you kindly? What if I could tell them about what you’ve done for the King and Queen, about all the good you’re doing to help them after the ‘serpent attack’? I know that they see you as a monster, but maybe…if you stopped the mining, they could see you differently.”  
  
He sighed. “That’s a hard ‘if’, Sundrop. Before we started sending them to the mines, there were riots nearly every day. Attempts on my life were made constantly, with the Saporians intervening each time. It was…” he looked to the side, “terrifying. I moved into the castle and the guards got replaced with Saporians to keep me safe because Old Corona wasn’t safe and they didn’t want to risk any danger from my old captors. That’s also why Nigel got put in prison.”  
  
“It must have been so hard…” She gently cupped his cheek.  
  
“More than you know.” He said grimly. “Those months after you left…those twisted games of tag and everything else…”  
  
She turned his face to her and kissed him again. “It’s in the past now. We look to the future, right? A new start. Healing.” She gently took his hand, lacing his fingers with hers. “A second chance, for all of us.”  
  
He looked at her silently, then sighed a bit. “If you can convince the people…I’ll stop the mining and the Quirineon plan.”  
  
She smiled and hugged him. “Thank you.”  
  
He held her tightly. “But…you have to promise that you will be careful. Take a neutral party, a friend. Take Lance.”  
  
She nodded. “I will.” She paused. “You just…asked me to _promise_ something.”  
  
“I did.” He nodded, stroking her cheek gently. “Will you keep it?”  
  
She smiled and brought his hand to her cheek, then moved her other hand to his cheek before kissing him again. “I will.”  
  
He smiled fondly. “I trust you, Sundrop.”  
  
She reached up a bit further to play with his hair a bit. “So…with that in mind…do you want to go somewhere besides the lab? Maybe my room?”  
  
He blushed a bit. “Uhm…okay, but we can’t go too far.”  
  
She smiled. “Let’s go.” She took his hand and led him to her tower bedroom.  
  
\--  
  
Faith wasn’t there when she arrived, and she led him in and then closed the door before looking around and blocking the door’s handles with something for privacy. He chuckled a bit and she looked over. “Hm?”  
  
“I was just thinking of when you last did that.” He looked around, noting that the animals weren’t around. Probably in the stables with Maximus and Fidella, then. “When we were in the fantasy land and we wanted to talk alone.”  
  
“Ah, yeah.” She nodded, then watched with pink cheeks as he shrugged off his coat and draped it over a chair. She took off her waistcoat and walked over to plop it on top of his, then wrapped her arms around him to kiss him. “Mmm…”  
  
He wrapped his arms around her, kissing her deeply as she slowly backed them up to the bed, then pulled him down on top of her like before. Their kiss broke as he fell on top of her and she giggled, playing with his hair. “Sorry.”  
  
“No, you’re not.” He gently held one of her braids and kissed it. “This is what you wanted.” He moved closer and kissed her and she moved her hands down his arms and then his chest, her fingers fumbling with his complicated belts as he hungrily kissed her. “So impatient.” He murmured, pulling back a bit and breaking the kiss. “You know we can only go so far.”  
  
“I knoooow…” She pouted, then pulled his belts open and off and threw them to the side, then started on her own. He gently eased her hands off and started to slowly remove her belts. She decided to occupy her hands by hiking up his short-sleeved shirt and rubbing her hands up his bare skin. He let out a soft, shuddering breath against her lips and she kissed him again.  
  
“You’re going to make it very difficult to not break the rules.” He murmured. “Why do you always make a criminal out of me?”  
  
“Technically, _I’m_ the criminal this time.” She poked his nose and giggled.  
  
He smiled and removed her belts, tossing them to the side before he pushed her shirt up, kissing her again. His hand caught on the golden Saporian pendant she wore that matched his own and he removed both of their pendants before kissing her again, setting them to the side gently, reverently.  
  
“Like what you see?” She asked, blushing as he pushed her shirt up to rest over her breasts. She smiled shyly up at him, playing with one of her braids absently with one hand, the other brushing a finger over his nipple, earning a soft groan.  
  
“You’re going to be the death of me, Princess.” He murmured. “You _know_ we can’t do this.”   
  
“ _I want to break every rule and cross every line._ ” She sang softly, slowly sitting up and kissing him. “ _I want to show all the stars how stars oughta shine._ ”  
  
“Rapunzel…” He murmured against her lips.  
  
“ _I wanna do as I please, I’m begging here on my knees. Let’s both just see where this moment’s going._ ” She pulled him down onto her and he sighed softly against her breasts.  
  
“You make a good argument…but, we still shouldn’t do it.” He said, slowly pulling back just enough to look in her eyes.  
  
“We don’t have to go all the way.” She pleaded. “Just…touch me. Please me, as I know you can.” She gently cupped his cheek. “And _only_ you.”  
  
“You make it very hard to refuse.” He said, moving a hand up to gently cup her breast.  
  
“So, stop. Stop trying to, stop fighting it.” She kissed him again. “I want you, Varian. My Moonstone.”  
  
He blushed. “We can’t go all the way.”  
  
“We don’t have to.” She hiked up her skirt and his breath hitched as the fabric moved under him. “Just touch me.”  
  
He let out a soft groan and kissed her again, grinding his clothed groin against her as she spread her legs invitingly, her skirt resting against her stomach. She played with his hair, then gave it a gentle tug and he let out a high moan before kissing her again, more passionately, and wrapped his arms around her as they moved together hungrily.  
  
“Rapunzel…” He murmured against her skin as his hands and lips explored her breasts.  
  
“Varian…” She moaned, taking off her gloves and tossing them to the side before reaching for his hands to remove his gloves. “Gloves off…” She pleaded.  
  
“Okay.” He nodded, kissing her again before he allowed her to remove his gloves one at a time as he continued to lavish her breasts with much-craved attention, his clothed groin rubbing against her lower regions. He wondered if Rapunzel usually went without covering, or if she did it for him.   
  
“Varian…” She murmured again, grinding up against him and hooking her legs around him eagerly. “I need you…”  
  
“Don’t get delirious, Rapunzel, we need to keep our wits about us if we’re going to keep from crossing that particular line.” He reminded her, panting softly. She moved his head back down to her breasts and he continued kissing and gently sucking on them at her urging.  
  
“Maybe that’s what I _want_.” She whispered, her cheeks pink.  
  
He chuckled softly. “Of course it is.” He pressed up against her more and she let out a moan, feeling his clothed erection through his pants. “But, you _know_ why we _can’t_.”  
  
“Because everyone says to wait until marriage.” She pouted. “I don’t see why I should _have_ to.”  
  
“Because _I_ want to.” He raised an eyebrow.  
  
“…Okay, that’s a good reason.” She nodded.  
  
He kissed her gently, then pulled his hips back as he moved a hand down to gently stroke two fingers against her loins. “All we can do is touches like this until then.”  
  
“You’re teasing me. Why make me wait?” She pouted.  
  
He hummed a bit. “Maybe because you could do with learning to be patient. And also because I have things I need to get done before we take that step, such as the restoration of Saporia and taking care of Cassandra.”  
  
“Oh, right.” She blushed. “I, uh…forgot about her.” She admitted. “Was… _really_ distracted by—ohh!” She gasped and arched her body as he pushed a finger inside. “Ohhh…”  
  
“’Distracted by’?” He teased.  
  
“Hmm…mmm…” She gripped his shirt. “Don’t…stop.” She demanded breathlessly.  
  
“As you wish, Your Highness.” He moved the finger out, then pushed it back in before joining it with another.  
  
“Hhhaaa…mnnnn…” She squirmed a bit, her body trembling. His fingers, so dexterous from years of working with small pieces of equipment and handling fragile vials for years, felt _heavenly_ inside of her and she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him again, rocking her hips into his hand as he added another finger. “Mmm…mmmmm…”  
  
He chuckled softly against her lips. “Still so impatient.” He murmured, his other hand massaging her breast. “How are we going to be able to go to that meeting when you’re like this?”  
  
“Nnn…don’t…don’t leave me hanging.” She pleaded. “Give me…please…”  
  
“Don’t worry.” He whispered. “Just because we can’t go all the way, it doesn’t mean I can’t still please you.” Another finger pushed inside and then he shifted his hand and she saw stars, her eyes going wide and her lips parting in a high moan. He kissed her again to muffle it, his tongue slipping in to do the job even better, and she slung to his arms desperately ad she silently begged for him to do that again. He obliged, and she wrapped her legs around him tightly, throwing her head back against the bed as he started to suck on her breasts again, his tongue teasing her nipple.  
  
“Varian…Varian…” She whimpered, and then he shifted his hand again and she moved her hands up to cover her mouth, muffling her moans to not attract any guards. Sure, the ones that been guarding her room had _left_ once she proved her allegiance, but they still might be around.  
  
Another twist of the wrist and a flick of her clit with his thumb and she was having serious trouble keeping her hands over her mouth, her body jerking and arching as he brought her closer and closer to release.  
  
Finally, she reached her limit and let out a desperate cry, which he muffled with his lips as she threw her arms around him again, his fingers still buried deep inside of her as she soaked his hand. She melted against him, her legs dropping to his sides, and let out a little swooning sigh when he finally broke the kiss and slowly pulled his fingers out. “Whoa….”  
  
He chuckled softly and kissed her sweetly before looking at his hand. “I take it you enjoyed yourself.” He said, giving his finger an experimental lick. She felt her heart jump into her throat at the sight and she nodded, unable to speak right now. “Good.” He got up and went to his coat, pulling out a cloth to wipe off his hand.  
  
“Could we…do this again sometime?” She asked, barely moving as she watched him.  
  
“Sure.” He nodded.  
  
“I need to…you still haven’t been satisfied.” She slowly sat up.  
  
He walked over and kissed her. “Trust me, I have been.” He whispered. “I think we _both_ need to change our clothes before the meeting tonight.”  
  
“Oh.” She breathed, blushing. “Uhm…yeah. Yeah, you should…uhm…go do that.”  
  
He nodded and got up to put his belts, pendant and coat back on. Then they kissed one more time before he put his gloves on and headed for the door. “See you later.” He said, removing the barricade.  
  
“Mmhm.” She gave a shy little wave, watching as he left. Then she sighed and laid back down. “…My legs feel like jelly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keeping Rapunzel from taking Varian into her bed seems to be a much more difficult job than anticipated!


	13. 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's plans to make and pirates to prepare to stop, but Rapunzel is distracted with her own goals concerning Varian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

After a quick change of clothes, they met up again and headed for the war room, where they would be meeting with Trevor and the others on the subject of Lady Caine. Rapunzel tried to keep mental notes of what they would be discussing, preparing herself mentally, but all she could think about was how nice Varian’s fingers felt inside of her. She never thought she would be jealous of a glove, but she was jealous of his gloves, so snug and tight around him in her place, concealing his beautiful, talented fingers.  
  
The others would surely scold her if they knew what she’d talked him into. But, she couldn’t help but get a thrill about skirting the line they’d drawn. She looked at him as they took their seats and then the meeting began.  
  
Honestly, it wasn’t really required she be here, she was mostly here to be, well, present. She didn’t have much input to give, and she wasn’t there with Eugene and Maximus had faced Lady Caine while they were on their trip. She sighed a bit, considering how he’d picked a hell of a time to leave. But, she also couldn’t blame him.  
  
“There’s reports of weapons that the stolen prison barge shouldn’t have, harpoons and the like. She’s done some work on it.” Varian said, and he actually sounded impressed. Rapunzel pouted a bit and moved her hand to his leg. His breath hitched before he cleared his throat and continued talking and she wondered how much she could get away with.  
  
Juniper had been a fountain on knowledge on how to tease a man, and the book she’d given her had been even _more_ informative. She moved her hand along his leg and gasped when he moved a hand down to grab her hand and move it onto Rapunzel’s lap before he moved his hand back up, never stopping what he was saying the entire time.  
  
The _multitasking_ this guy could do. _Phew_. She moved her foot and ran it along the back of his leg and he glanced at her before replying to something someone else said.  
  
“According to reports, they seem to have a very vigilant night-guard.” He said calmly. “Will your men be able to get past them unseen?”  
  
“I assure you, my men will be able to get on, take care of the problem, and get out before they’re even _noticed_.” Trevor assured them. “Why, just ask Frederic how many pranks I’ve pulled on the sly with my men.” He grinned a bit.  
  
“Far too many.” King Frederic sighed. “But, he has a point. Between the Saporians’ magic and technology and his highly-trained stealth troops, we have the upper hand.”  
  
“I want her alive.” Varian said, nodding. “Can that be arranged?”  
  
“Of course.” Trevor assured him.  
  
Rapunzel moved her hand back to his leg and he ignored her this time, focusing on the meeting. She suppressed a giggle, knowing how much of a workaholic he was, and then trailed her finger along his leg again. He ignored her still, and she took it as a challenge and moved her hand a little further into his lap.  
  
“Princess Rapunzel, what do _you_ think of this plan?” He asked, catching her completely off-guard.  
  
“H-Huh?” She moved her hand back, her cheeks pink. “Well, uh…I think…it’s a good idea.”  
  
Juniper snickered and Andrew looked exasperated. Varian sighed and took her hand, placing it on the table. “Why don’t you read over the notes I’ve been making, hm?” He handed them to her. “And keep your hands on the table.”  
  
“Okay.” She said sheepishly, her face red as she quietly read over his notes while the meeting continued, Varian continuing to take notes on another sheet of paper.  
  
She wasn’t going to lie, her stint as Queen for a day hadn’t…gone well, even without the whole Varian and demonic blizzard part. She wasn’t cut out for this kind of work, but she could at least smile and wave and keep the people happy. With any luck, she could convince them not to be hostile and the gas wouldn’t be needed. But, battle strategies? Complicated problem-solving that she couldn’t handle herself physically? She didn’t know that kind of thing. She was less talk, more action.   
  
Good thing Varian was very good at the more talk, less action thing. Maybe that was why he could calculate every move they were going to make before they made it, back then. He was really a formidable foe, and now he was using that amazing mind of his to run Corona.  
  
The meeting concluded before she even finished reading his notes and he handed her his other notes as they got up, clearly intending for her to read them.   
  
“We’ll set out tonight, then.” Andrew said to Varian.  
  
“I’ll make sure we have a nice room set up for Lady Caine. I’m sure she’ll listen to our point of view in time.” Varian nodded.  
  
Rapunzel checked the notes. Apparently, they intended to convince Lady Caine to be their ally – convince, it looked like, through coercion and imprisonment and bribery. Just like she had been, only _hopefully_ with less flirting from _her_ young teenaged lover.  
  
“We can only hope.” Andrew smiled and then walked off with Juniper. Trevor walked off with her mother and father and everyone else went their separate ways.  
  
Varian watched them go, then took a deep breath before turning to her. “What was _that_?”  
  
She smiled nervously. “Uhm…flirting?”  
  
“In the middle of a meeting? There is a time and place for that kind of thing, Rapunzel, and in the middle of a strategy meeting is _not_ one of them.” He said firmly.  
  
She looked down. “…Sorry.”  
  
He looked at her, then sighed and cupped her cheek, tilting her head up to kiss her gently. “I like that you’re taking initiative, but you need to be careful, okay? We’ll do more stuff like that tonight, after I get everything set up for Lady Caine.”  
  
“Okay.” Rapunzel nodded with a smile. “Uhm…did you check on Cass earlier?”  
  
“I haven’t yet.” Varian sighed. “Been too busy. Running a Kingdom isn’t easy.”  
  
“Heh, yeah. I remember.” Rapunzel nodded. “So many…problems to solve.”  
  
“Speaking of problems, when are you going to talk to them?” Varian asked.  
  
“I’ll go see Lance tomorrow.” Rapunzel nodded.  
  
Varian nodded. “Take a guard or two with you. I don’t want them attacking you on your way out of the city.”  
  
Rapunzel nodded, then handed him the notes. “So, uhm…do you want any help getting the room ready?”  
  
“Honestly, I’m considering just reusing Eugene’s, but sure.” He shrugged. “Where do you suggest?”  
  
\--  
  
Interior decorating, she could do that no problem. Just like with preparing King Trevor’s room, she picked out one that she thought might be comfortable but wasn’t easy to escape – no window – and watched as Varian installed cuffs to the bed.  
  
“So…how are you gonna convince her?” She asked as she made the bed with fresh bedding.  
  
“I’m not, Andrew’s taking care of that.” Varian shrugged. “Not sure how he plans to, but he’s pretty good at getting people to listen to what he wants.”  
  
“You don’t think he’ll…you know, seduce her?” She asked, looking at him.  
  
Varian sighed, glancing away. “Andrew…can’t really do that anymore.”  
  
She blinked. “Oh. Uhm…I’m sorry to hear that.”  
  
“I mean, he’s still got the equipment, but he mentally can’t do it.” Varian shook his head. “Prison was…hell.”  
  
She nodded. “You’ve mentioned that. I can’t imagine what you went through, I really can’t.”  
  
“It’s better you don’t try.” He walked over and took her hand, gently kissing it. “Well, I think we’re about done in here. I should make sure your parents don’t need anything before I devote my attention solely to you.”  
  
She blushed, nodding. “Okay.”  
  
He stroked her cheek fondly and walked out of the room. Rapunzel followed him out and to where her parents were sitting in their study with King Trevor.  
  
“Your Majesties, the room is ready for Lady Caine when Andrew and the others return.” Varian said pleasantly. “Is there anything you need?”  
  
“No, you can get some rest.” King Frederic assured him. “Thank you for all your hard work today.”  
  
“You three make sure to get rest soon, too.” Varian smiled.  
  
“I will remain awake until my troops return triumphant.” King Trevor assured him. “Rest well, young advisor.”  
  
“Well, I’m going to head to bed too. Good night!” Rapunzel said as she pulled Varian away.  
  
“…He’s not getting much sleep, is he?” King Trevor commented as they closed the door to their study behind them.  
  
Varian sighed and looked at her as they walked down the hall. “You _could_ be less obvious.”  
  
She smiled sheepishly. “Sorry. I just…I _really_ enjoyed what we did earlier, and I wanted to try something new, if you were willing.”  
  
He shrugged. “Okay, but you _know_ that we can’t actually have sex yet.”  
  
“It’s not _quite_ sex…” She said, squeezing his hand. “Come on, humor me.”  
  
He sighed and they headed up to her room together. “If only Eugene knew how crazy you get about sex when you’re introduced to it, maybe he wouldn’t have lost you to me.”  
  
“No, because that’s not what drew me to you.” She opened the door and pulled him in before kissing him. “It’s your _passion_ , and your willingness to try new things.” She ran her fingers through his hair and kissed him again. “Mmm…”  
  
He held her close, kissing her deeper, and they made their way to the bed before he pinned her down on top of it. “I need to get the door.”  
  
“Don’t be gone long.” She said as he pulled away and went to secure the door. Then he walked over to her, shrugging off his coat as he walked and then kneeling on the bed to kiss her, sliding her coat off his shoulders as he did. “Mmm, welcome back.” She said, watching as she untied his scarf and then her own, setting both aside.   
  
“I didn’t really leave.” He raised an eyebrow. “So, what new thing did you want to do?”  
  
She unfastened the belts over his shirt and pulled them off, kissing him again as she did. “Let’s work our way up to it. We have time, right?”  
  
“You’re insufferable.” He unfastened her belts and removed them before kissing her again. “What is Corona going to do with such a needy Princess, hm?”  
  
“Rely on their handsome Royal Advisor?” She poked his nose and pulled up his shirt before leaning in and kissing his neck. His breath hitched and she smiled before doing it again and then gently clamping her lips on his neck, giving a gentle suck in a spot that would be covered by his scarf later.  
  
“How can they do that, if the Princess is constantly keeping him busy, hm?” He gently cupped her breasts, earning a moan. Then he trailed his fingers along her sides and she let out a surprised giggle. “Answer that one, Sundrop.”  
  
“Uhmm….” she shrugged, “wait their turn?”  
  
He laughed and laid her down, kissing her. “Like I said, you’re needy.”  
  
“I’ve been giving so much, I think I could do a little taking for once.” She pouted and kissed him. “Help me get these clothes off.”  
  
He pulled back and then helped her remove her clothes, then his shirt. He kept his pants on, though, probably to remind her that there was a certain line they couldn’t cross. Oh, but she wanted to cross it, though. She placed her hand against his clothed erection and he let out a soft groan before kissing her again.  
  
“So,” he murmured, kissing down her body, “what did you want me to do?” He cupped her breasts and started to suck on her nipple while pinching on the other. “I’m all ears.”  
  
“Mm…” She hummed happily and spread her legs. “I heard that it feels _real good_ to lick a woman down there.” She moved her hand to her folds, dipping a finger in. God, she was so wet already.   
  
He kissed his way down, then took his time kissing her legs and thighs before working his way between her legs, his breath hot against her quivering folds. She used two fingers to spread them open and he blushed, looking in awe at the soft, pink opening. He hadn’t really looked at it when he used his fingers, and she let him take some time to admire it before she stroked his hair with her other hand and guided his head forward.  
  
“ _Someone’s_ insistent.” He moved one of his soft, talented hands up and dipped in a finger before he pulled it out and sucked on the finger. She moaned and shifted her hips pleadingly. He chuckled and gently gripped her hips before moving his head forward, kissing the delicate folds before he dipped his tongue in. She gasped sharply, feeling a jolt of pleasure hit her. He moved his tongue out and she whined a bit before he stuck it back in, deeper this time. She gasped, moaned and whimpered, tugging at his hair and the sheets under her as he started to explore inside of her with his tongue.  
  
“Haaahhh…mmmnnn…” She whimpered, leaning her head back. “V-Varian…ahhh…”  
  
“Mmnnn…” He pulled his tongue out and licked his lips. “You’re delicious.”  
  
She blushed. “R-Really?”  
  
“The sweetest treat in all Corona.” He assured her before he dipped back in, his hands moving up to rub her sides as he kept her legs apart with his body.  
  
“Ohhh…” She moaned, tugging on his hair again and earning a moan of pleasure. “V-Varian…hmm…” She whimpered, her legs trembling as she was barely hanging on, she was so close already. “Pl—oh!” She yelped in pleasure as his tongue flicked her clit and then it dove back in, while Rapunzel was still recovering from that wave of pleasure that shot through her. “Varian…hmm…Varian…I’m close…so close…”  
  
He pulled his tongue out and she let out a disappointed whine. “What would you like me to do, Princess?” He asked, looking at her from between her legs.  
  
“ _Keep your tongue in there._ ” She hooked her legs around his neck aggressively.  
  
“Yes, Your Highness.” He went back in and she moaned, thrashing her head from side to side as she grew closer and closer to her limit, his tongue moving around in her and bringing her to completion.  
  
Finally she felt her body jolt and she cried out was pleasure as she released. She could feel his tongue working to drink it all up and she swooned from the sensation, her fingers tight around a lock of his hair and the bedsheet under her. Finally, she finished and let out a happy moan as she let go of his neck, her legs dropping to her sides with a swoon.  
  
He pulled out and licked his lips, smiling down at her. “Did you like that?”  
  
“Mmhm.” She beckoned him closer and he moved over her, kissing her sweetly. “But, now it’s your turn.” She murmured, before grabbing onto him with her arms and legs and rolling them over.  
  
“R-Rapunzel?” He stammered, blushing as she straddled his hips and kissed down his body, licking and sucking enough to surely leave marks. Then she sat on his knees and reached up to unfasten his pants, bringing out his aching erection. “Y-You don’t have to—”  
  
“Shhh.” She leaned down and kissed the tip of his cock. “Just let me do this, okay? I’ve been doing a _lot_ of studying, and I want to try it out.”  
  
“O-Okaaay.” He said nervously.   
  
Yes, he was aware of what a blowjob was, he wasn’t an idiot, he’d even been forced to _watch_ one before, but this would be his first time _getting_ one and he was a little bit nervous. Rapunzel smiled reassuringly at him and then licked the tip before wrapping her lips around the head, her hand wrapped around the length as she started to suck him off.  
  
“Hnn…gh…” He brought a hand to his mouth, his cheeks pink. “Rapunzel…”  
  
“Mmmnnn…hhmmmm…” She hummed around him, sending shivers of pleasure up his body, and he clutched at the bed with a moan as she moved her hand to take in more, her tongue licking around his cock like it was the best pasty she’d ever had. He watched as her head bobbed up and down on him and shifted his hips a bit, stopping when she put her hands down on his hips to keep them still.   
  
“Yes, Your Highness.” He murmured, watching in awe as she took in more and more. God, did this girl have a gag reflex at all? She kept pulling back and then taking in more, taking a deep breath every time she pulled off. He panted heavily as he watched her, feeling himself growing closer to completion. Knowing that he was the first, and probably only, guy that would ever see her like this was… _thrilling_. And he wouldn’t deny that he felt a sense of triumph at seeing her service him. The all-powerful Princess of Corona, sitting on her knees sucking off her Overlord, her Usurper, the one who took everything from her – even her heart.   
  
But she’d taken his heart, too, so it was fair. He smiled fondly at her, moaning in pleasure and gripping the bedsheets under them tightly into bunches before he finally couldn’t hold back anymore and threw his head back with a moan akin to a wolf’s howl. She stilled, and he looked at her and watched as she drank up his seed and _swallowed_ it. Then she pulled off with a pop of her lips and licked them, smiling at him.  
  
“I love you.” He said, and she looked surprised before scooting up to his lap, her folds pressing against his cock, and kissed him. He smiled and returned the kiss, but gently moved his hands to her hips to keep her from doing anything sneaky. “I love you,” he murmured, “but it’s still too early for that.”  
  
She grinned sheepishly, and then laid him down, laying next to him and trailing her finger up and down his cock as she kissed him again. “I love you, too. Funny how we didn’t actually say that yet.”  
  
“We’ve been using actions instead of words.” He shrugged. “If you keep doing that, then I’m going to get aroused again.”  
  
“Maybe that’s what I want.” She wriggled her eyebrows suggestively.  
  
“Princess, I can tell that you want to break that rule.” He moved his hand down to take hers and move it aside, then tucked himself back in before fastening his pants.  
  
“Well, can’t blame a girl for trying.” Rapunzel shrugged. “You’re teasing me.”  
  
“Well,” he kissed her and chuckled, “do you have any idea how often you’ve teased me? Turnabout is fair play, Your Highness.”  
  
She sighed and curled into him a bit. “Okay, but once Cass is taken care of, I want to get married. I am _not_ waiting for Saporia to be fully restored.”  
  
“Well, I suppose I can grant that.” He kissed her sweetly, then lifted her up as he got under the blanket, pulling it over them. “For now, let’s sleep.”  
  
She nodded, yawning a bit before kissing his neck and wrapping her arms around him, humming against his skin. He held her close to him, sighing happily as they lay together, drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, now we just have to stop Cass and take the Moonstone and then those wedding bells will ring!
> 
> ((A/N: I'd like to apologize for taking so long to update stuff. I've been working on a Season 3 rewrite fic, which I will post the first chapter of after I write a few more "episodes". I hope you guys enjoy it, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll be making a To-do list for my writings and try to get everything updated again soon.))


	14. A/N: CONCERNING THE FUTURE OF THIS FIC

Okay, first, sorry for taking so long to update this fic. The truth is, I actually kind of want to write everything after Eugene leaves, because Rapunzel wanting to jump Varian's bones before marriage was the earnest request of a discord group I am no longer part of and had a bad falling-out with, so all of her aggressive flirting was different ideas _they_ suggested. Therefore, I am asking you, the readers, what you think I should do. Should I carry on with Rapunzel continuing to aggressively flirt like she got possessed by a succubus in heat, or should I rewrite those chapters so they're more plot-focused with mixes of cute romantic moments in-between? I know that a lot of you seem to be enjoying this version, which is why I'm leaving it up to you.  
  
I look forward to your answers.  
  
~ Zone


	15. A/N: I have decided

Thank you to everyone that left comments on the previous A/N! You're all very sweet and considerate, and it was great to hear from all of you. I have decided that I'm going to just continue from where I left off, never mind _who_ suggested the development up until now! I'm not writing this for them, I'm writing it for me and I'm writing it for all of _you_ , and thank you _so_ much for being patient with me! :D  
  
~ Zone

**Author's Note:**

> This connection between Varian and Rapunzel is not something that can be explained by science.


End file.
